I'm in my 3rd year at the company, but I feel like I've been dragging out my job search prep for too long

I think quitting is truly a last resort. When I was in my third year, I had similar worries and just stayed, and sticking it out back then ended up helping my career a lot.

Well, I'm not so sure about that. If someone can't even spend 2 hours a day now, will they spend 8 hours after quitting? Usually, when people suddenly have more time, they just end up dawdling. The reason they can't do it now is more likely a matter of energy or direction, not time.

Agreed, same here lol. The urge to quit is what keeps you from preparing.

It’s a bit concerning that you’ve been working on your portfolio since last year—are you trying to make it perfect? From a practitioner’s perspective, 2–3 projects with a clear problem statement and clearly defined personal contributions land much better than a polished portfolio. Start by drastically narrowing the scope.

It’s not a reckless move, but run the numbers before you decide. If you’ve got at least six months of living expenses + insurance premiums + a story to explain the gap during your job transition, quitting is an option too. But few people have all that, so most can’t leave lol.

Source? I'd like to see some reviews saying it can't even be used for 2 hours.

I quit my job last year to prepare, and it worked out well in the end. That said, I spent the first two months pretty much doing nothing, and I'd appreciate it if you kept in mind that I only settled into a routine after that. It's true that preparing while working at a company is hard, but quitting doesn't automatically solve it.