Take a motorcycle safety course. Cheap, and easy to find.
ALL THE GEAR, ALL THE TIME! i.e., dress for the crash, not the ride. Sweat washes off. Skin grafts in the Burn Unit suck.
Learn your bike's basics-tire pressures (frequent), chain slack, headlight adjustments, fluid levels, what wires go to what things, especially running lights. No, you don't have to become a master mechanic, but if you miss an avoidable problem, it's your butt, not someone elses.
I always rode (yes, past tense; I'm currently hugely underemployed) in the left side of the lane. My rationale: I drive from the left side of my car, therefore all my visual cues are the same, I'm seen in both car mirrors, I stay out of blind spots, no one can get me opening a car door, and people have to pass me properly without running me out of my lane.
Oh, and practice, practice, practice! Find deserted roads and do progressively harder stops to the point of nearly losing the front end so you're not surprised during a real emergency. Practice swerves and lane changes, and progressively add some braking. You'll thank yourself when you prevent some moron from killing you. And they WILL try to kill you.
If you can possibly afford it, take professionally taught track courses. I know I will when I can.
Ride safe!