dear Frank;
Being aware of your wanting to learn Chinese,I'd like to give you some advice.
first,I hope you could go to Chinese classes,in there,you can exchange some experiences of learning Chinese with your classmates.and once you got some question,you can ask your teacher for help immediately.
second,you'd better take lots of practice,such as listening to the radio,reading Chinese stories,which are beneficial for you.
and lastly,a dictionary would be useful.when you encountered a word you didn't know,you can look it up in the dictionary.
After a long process,you may find it interesting to learn Chinese and then your Chinese improve.
sincerely