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One step at a time.

If you are new, all the options, all the bells and whistles, will be pulling you off in many directions, I like to call them rabbit trails.

The point is to stay focused and start simply. If you load a project and try to do everything in it, you will become overwhelmed rather quickly. AND, the project will sound like crap because you don't know what you're doing...... take time and learn. You will not mix a Bill Board hit your first year.

TRY THIS: remove ALL the FX from a project. Now, with just a few bare bones dry tracks, work with it to get it sounding as good as possible. The only thing you are allowed to add is reverb. Nothing else. Add just enough that you can hear it's there, then back it off a few clicks. (trust me on this)

Here's the truth. After working in a focused way for over 3 years to become as good as I possibly can, in the majority of my current projects, the only FX I add is reverb. I might tweek the EQ on an instrument IF I feel it is absolutely needed. BUT that is all I use after all these years of mixing.

If you can not make a dry bones track sound good on it's own, adding FX will not fix it.

Don't despair. There are people here at all stage of musical & mixing development. Start with the basics, and post your BASIC song projects in the songs forum. People will listen and give you their opinion and advice. Learn from that. It's there for that reason. I have learned so much from posting there and just hearing other people's music and reading the commentary on it..... do the same, and then work for 1 year before you evaluate where you are. It will surprise you... if you stick with it.