I wish I'd known...

I'm getting into the part of gathering that isn't just "do leves until your fingers bleed", BTN/MIN are both 51+ and I suddenly have options.

I tend to overresearch a ton so I feel like I understand the new collectable system, temple leves, etc. but there is no substitute for real experience.

With that in mind I'm curious what info you have now as an experienced gatherer that you wish you'd known when you started.

Thanks in advance for any helpful tips! :D

Investing in better gear is worth it even if you're just leveling off leves. It makes the whole process that much faster. You might have it for a day and be done with it and feel like you didn't get your money's worth because you're already replacing it. The alternative can be the same amount of time and work getting you half the progress because you aren't seeing HQs, you're missing outright, or you can't spend GP effectively.

Once you start doing collectables for xp, look into using a timer website so you don't miss when the unspoiled nodes come up, such as https://www.garlandtools.org/bell/

That, and keep your gear up to date, and start saving materia for later if you can (ixal daily beast tribe quests give materia for example, or you can buy it with red scip, etc). If you're not leveling all your gathering classes at the same time, save the gear for later, so you don't have to get it all again when you go to level your second or third gathering class (or if you're going to have a gathering retainer).

I wish I had known that collectables sucked, so that I could stick to combat jobs and be done with it.

I wish I had known to stop using leves after Lv60-61. I went back to them at 60 because of the expansion shenanigans from 60-61, but grinding is almost as fast if not faster after that level. And collectibles are insanely good.

I wish I would have leveled my retainers as DoL sooner after leveling my character's job up. They can be sent on hourly ventures to collect gatherables and become a passive gil generator when the materials are in high demand or are brand new. Eventually you will be able to gather unspoiled items on them as well. The main time to use these would have been to feed materials at the start of Stormblood, but there should be more opportunities to utilize this strategy in future patches. Even today they can gather materials for 2 star crafting materials and are in high demand for the new crafting gear. Get ventures by: Greeding all the gear that drops in your roulettes, turn them into GC seals, buy ventures. Most people pass all the gear when I run an expert, I'll happily turn them into seals.

I'd've started collectables earlier than I did. They're so easy to level that way. And for fishing, at least 60+, the leves are turn-ins for fish so you can basically buy your way to 70 that method. I only caught onto that 67+. LOL. Wish I'd known sooner.

edit: and I worried much more about my gear when I was level to the cap at 60 (I only got them to cap after HW started) and now I realize much of that was a waste of time and money. This is something most newbie gatherers don't seem to believe. They bring me all the expensive crafting material to make a set for them and then think I'm lying that they don't need it... and the next day they're at level cap and need to save up give for the starter level cap gear. xD