[ubernostrum]

Start with zero add-ons. Don't use any fancy modes, just let it do syntax highlighting and maybe ctags and nothing else. Especially no VCS integration, no debugging or shells. Use it to edit text. Get familiar with: buffers; windows; the mark and the region; the kill ring and how to use it; the standard editing and navigation commands available in every buffer.

Once you feel comfortable with those, then you can think about adding other stuff on, and can add things one at a time.

I've been using Emacs since 2000 or so, and that's how I started. It's also how I still often use Emacs today; I don't particularly care for IDE-like features, and I don't use a lot of packages. And I'm still quite productive with it because the base stuff Emacs is good at is already pretty darned good!