Start with WordPress.org's official documentation and the block editor tutorial, then immediately spin up a live site on shared hosting (Bluehost, SiteGround, or Canadian hosts like CanSpace run $5–15/month). Install a starter theme like Astra or GeneratePress and a page builder—Elementor Free or the native Gutenberg editor are both solid starting points. Build 3–5 practice sites for fake businesses to learn the interface, then offer free or cheap builds ($300–800) to real local clients. You learn fastest when someone's actually going to use what you make. After you're comfortable with visual builders, learn basic CSS and PHP by customizing child themes. You don't need to become a developer, but understanding how to write a media query or hook into WordPress actions separates hobbyists from professionals. Focus on practical skills: speed optimization (use Query Monitor and GTmetrix), security basics (Wordfence, proper user roles), and SEO fundamentals (Yoast or RankMath setup, proper heading structure, schema markup). These matter more than design trends. Watch out for tutorial hell—spending months on Udemy courses without shipping real sites. Also avoid over-reliance on heavy themes like Avada or Divi that bundle everything; they create slow, hard-to-customize sites. At Ottawa SEO, we typically start new designers on Elementor + lightweight themes, then move them toward custom block patterns and ACF once they understand WordPress core concepts. The goal is building fast, maintainable sites clients can actually update themselves. Budget 6–12 months to feel competent if you're practicing 10+ hours weekly. Join WordPress meetups (Ottawa has an active group, most cities do) and browse the support forums to see what breaks and why. Real-world troubleshooting teaches you more than any structured course. Your first 10 sites will be mediocre—that's normal. By site 15–20 you'll have developed actual taste and workflow.