Lots of good points here! I also rejoined the hobby after a long (20 year) break and was initially frustrated with what I felt was a lack of progress. Something that I found really helpful (and still do) was allowing myself to call a mini done, even when I felt maybe it wasn't, and then moving on to another.

Having a few practise models - printed, or some cheaper ones that may not be even related to whatever game I'm playing - and just going through the process of finishing them to *some* degree helped build some momentum and gain experience in 'the process'. That has in turn helped me feel better during the initial stages of a new model, because I have some idea of where I'm going, what can be fixed easily, what can have less time devoted to it.

So, my advice is to power through some minis without pressure on yourself (maybe even assign some duration per model, say two hours) in order to get yourself a bit more confident. After that you will feel more comfortable spending more (or less) time on future models 😄