Honestly, I just jumped straight in about 5 years ago. Best thing I ever did.

If you want an easy time time, install Linux Mint. If you want to understand Linux, then install Arch from scratch using the Arch Wiki (do it a few times).

I'd recommend spinning up a virtual machine on your Windows host first, and make use of the snapshots feature to roll back any breaking changes make when screwing around.

My advice would be to ditch all of the Windows apps that you've become comfortable with. Some may have native support with Linux, but its a nightmare trying to get them to work if they don't (wine is a pain).

Get comfortable with the command line. I'm an avid Vim user now. After getting through the steep learning curve, its now the only text editor I use. It is also the fastest and most efficient way to type.

When you master the CLI, there's no need for bloated software like Word or LibreOffice, you can convert markdown documents you wrote using Vim to Pdfs using tools like Pandoc.

If you have any questions or need support, then please feel free to reach out, I'm more than happy to give advice or support on your Linux journey !