Yes crab, I mean exactly that. No need to be risking finger trouble by selecting autopilot cues at a critical phase of flight when things are going nicely. Better wait until the aircraft has reached a safe height and attained Vy or better. I think when to be selecting higher modes is also situation dependent. If it is a programmed SID, you may well want to select NAV at Vmini, especially if going IMC at a very ealry stage.
Licensing focuses on certain flying standard, but these rarely have any bearing on accident situations. That's why we have CRM and why it is important for multi-crew and especially important for pilots operating alone.
I find some of the simplest situations begin to get loaded if CRM and MCC are poor, whereas more complicated situations are managed comfortably by a crew that knows what it is doing and communicates well.
TT