French is spoken by 310 million people across 29 countries on five continents. It's the official language of international institutions (UN, EU, NATO), a major language of African business, and one of the most studied languages on earth for good reason.
Start with pronunciation.
French pronunciation has rules, but they're different from English. The silent letters, liaison, and nasal vowels can all be mastered early if you work with a native speaker from day one. Don't let apps cement bad habits.
Learn the gender of every noun.
Every French noun is masculine or feminine — and this affects adjectives, articles, and pronouns. The trick is to learn the gender with the word from the very beginning (never learn "chat" alone — always learn "le chat").
Verb conjugations.
French has many conjugation forms but in daily spoken French, you'll use a fraction of them. Focus on present, passé composé (past), and futur simple first. Everything else can come later.
Listen to French from day one.
French spoken at native speed sounds completely different from textbook French. Watch French films, listen to French radio, find a French teacher — your ear needs as much training as your mouth.