Not necessarily. When you submerge your wand into your pitcher, pull and just let it rip for about a second. I do it a little more slowly, then let it steam. Make sure you have that little whirlpool going. Another key thing is when you do a flat white, make sure the shots pull down along the side of the cup. This will really help with your bubbles on the espresso side.

To help with bubbles, try the tap, tap, swirl. Tap the bottom of the pitcher gently on the counter a couple times, then swirl it around. Keep doing it just a little bit after every time you steam milk, and eventually you'll get the hang of it. Ideally, you want the milk to look like paint when you swirl it