I was determined to learn knowing that I was not going to be great. You have to say this is my staring point and I will only get better by doing. My first runner I FMQ had tons of "points" and crossovers, but I got the "feel" of what FMQ was all about. I started with stippling with a busy pattern, front and back because it hides mistakes. Found that tiny stippling is easier than big stipping. I FMQ twin size quilts for my children and believe me when I done quilting I had the rhythm and even my quilting teacher who longarms said I was doing great! Matching thread is key while you are learning.