Rule #1 of All Coding: Keep it simple. If it's not simple, simplify it. Once you've got that rule down, pick a popular language (Python's good because you can

Rule #1 of All Coding: Keep it simple. If it's not simple, simplify it. Once you've got that rule down, pick a popular language (Python's good because you can ask questions and get answers), pick a simple program that'd be useful to you, and then figure out what you need to make it work. Then make it work, applying rule #1. Rinse and repeat.