It is very possible my first mudding job looked about like that. But the learning curve isn't too steep, and plaster is pretty forgiving.

Knock down high spots and paper any junctions or corners where you haven't yet. Then just keep on going, smoothing rough spots, and working toward an overall skim coat. I always prefer a good flexible 6" knife for most of that. One trick is to use a worklight at a steep raking angle, so you can see all the imperfections.

Don't be in a hurry and it will eventually get done, and you'll probably be half-decent with a mudding knife by then.