[Blink]

If I want to learn a new language I start with writing an IRC chat bot.
I don't actually read some fancy tutorials, I just learn as I go.

I agree, but the actual project isn't important. I learned every one of my multitude of languages by doing the following:

1. Pick a project, something not too challenging, but something that's not small
2. pick a subproject (a smaller part of your project)
3. google around on the THEORY of doing that
4. attempt to write as much code as you can on your own
5. google how to do the tricky bits
6. test
7. repeat from step 2

8. repeat from step 1

This is basically what I do, although I end up doing a ton of projects and never finish any of them

It's great advice though, once you know a few languages, you know them all.