I take a "pull" approach myself, and you're absolutely right about him being in a good situation. A CS degree with no experience is more likely to get an ordinary programming job than a self-taught freelancer with 4 years experience under his belt - in my experience.
I just wanted to expand on the "find a job or project or someone who has a real need." This part was tricky for me. I love learning, and my approach for a long time was to just keep learning rather than doing. As soon as I would finish one programming book or tutorial series I'd start on another. If I ran across something new and interesting I would switch over to it. After a long time approach to doing that I realized I had a lot of half-baked knowledge and nothing to show for it.
Finally I buckled down and "did." I started by tackling a problem of my own - keeping focused, on task, and efficient. It has become a tangible project that I will (soon) be able to show a potential employer or even make money off of it. The best part is that it's something I personally believe in and need, so I'm passionate about it. Working on someone else's project sometimes makes it hard to get excited about what you're creating.
If you can't think of some problem of your own to solve, work on someone else's. The best approach I know of here is to find a local not-for-profit organization or charity. Ask them what could improve their ability to do whatever it is they do, or even help save them money and then create it. Give it to them free of charge. This a) gives you something tangible to show potential employers, b) could possibly be a tax write off, c) gives you real world "pull" experience, d) is for a good cause.
Some people might tell you that you should never do work for free. In this case, the work you're doing is benefiting you, even if there is no money involved. Besides, if it's for a good cause then there will be rewards - assuming you believe in God or karma :)
To reiterate edw519, adjust your attitude, find something to build, and do it.