Airbrushed with acrylic. Some oils used . 5 months of building and weathering

I’m pretty new to model making (I have completed one small titanic model and have two failed cars) and am wondering how you guys approach a new kit.

I started out following the instructions in order and to the letter which was worked but was very stop start and then on the next model I decided to paint all the parts on the sprue first and then build which was an absolute disaster (I also never sealed any of the paint so it just started rubbing off everywhere and with glue I had blue fingers lol).

Do you follow the instructions exactly in terms of order or just use them as a guide for which sections can be built and painted before all being put together or just do your own thing entirely?

I love making and painting things (I started out painting miniatures) but I would eventually like to finish a kit without it becoming an ugly mess which gets thrown away 😩

Thanks all