My first real jump into the world of computers was building my own PC. Through doing this I learned what each component on a PC was and what they are for. Building a PC really showed me how much of tech can be trial and error. Through the installation of the software I needed I ran into many unforeseen issues, for example, boot failure, hardware being DOA, and driver issues, among others. All of these problems led me to better understand what a software or hardware problem could be and how to fix it.
Now that I have owned my own desktop for around five years now, I am more familiar with the architecture. When my PC runs into an issue, more than likely I am able to find the issues, be it a BSOD, driver failure, or other issues. All of this has come from practical experience.