I got a manual and it took about 2 days to feel comfortable enough driving it to go on the road with other cars. It won't be like learning how to drive from scratch. All you've gotta do is learn how to shift and some of the quirks of a manual, like hill roll back, and you can modify your shifting habits to either be more fuel economical or have faster acceleration (like if you're trying to pass someone).

Learn where the "grip point" is in the clutch pedal (something that my mom who has been driving stick shifts for 60 years didn't know was a thing). You can feel the clutch pedal engage, it gives a little bit of resistance, sometimes you can even feel it vibrate a little through your shoe. A lot of driving a manual is getting a feel for the clutch and the gas pedal, because you have to coordinate them in order to not stall the engine, or lurch forward. Don't worry though, modern clutches and manual transmissions are super tough, so you're not going to tear up the car or anything trying to learn how to drive it and stalling the engine a few dozen times.

I went to Austin about a month into having my VW GTI, and the scariest shit was trying to start the car on a hill. The Mustangs and many American cars have "hill assist" that prevents the car from rolling backwards when you start on a hill. Well, not my car. Your foot will go off of the brake pedal over to the gas pedal, and in that second, the car will roll backwards. Since 90% of the drivers now only drive automatics, they will stop behind you right on your ass, like hello even automatics can roll back of the hill is steep enough. Let your foot off the clutch a bit slower, and that will give you a little more forward power to avoid rollback. Also, when you stop on a hill, leave more room between the car in front of you, cause you will give your car more gas to not roll back as much, so you need about twice as much room.

So those are the main two things I wish I was taught learning how to drive a manual transmission. My mom taught me, and she was taught by her rage-a-holic drill sergeant dad, so he skipped a lot of know how and mechanical details with her. I think it actually makes me a safer driver. It's just about impossible to be on your phone or eating because you need one hand on the wheel and one hand to shift. So stick shift drivers are not distracted drivers. You also have way more control of the car on snow and ice, because manuals don't have an idle speed, so you can literally crawl at a snail's pace those few times a year that the roads ice over here. I find it easier to make evasive maneuvers when you are in control of the transmission. Like, do people in automatics even know they can be downshifted? Most don't. It just takes building up that confidence, and you can totally do it!

And future congrats on being one of the 10% of drivers now who can shift! I wouldn't have it any other way now.