While it's true that "Nobody is going to help you," I'm amazed at how much help I've received recently, as I was transitioning from completely-not-a-programmer to professional-software-developer. Free blogs to understand the culture. Free books and tutorials to understand the technology. Free tools and technology. Free Q&A websites for when you are stuck. No one will help you pick a direction, or to put in the work, and it's up to you to find a way to make yourself worth someone's money. But if you are moving in the right direction, the help will come. Which is good, because you can't do it alone.