Start by finding a good spot near hills to use your starting rock fast, farming wood and stone should be your first goal. Weaker spots on trees show up as a glowing x while ore nodes have sparkles, hitting these spots speeds up gathering by half. Always make stone tools immediately since they're way more efficient than the rock.

Once you've got basic tools down, focus hemp plants near water for cloth to craft a sleeping bag, this is crucial for respawn points. Stick to wood and stone early on since metal and sulfur just paint a target on your back. Need to mention that small bases in quiet spots are essential before stockpiling anything serious.

Base secure means you can upgrade to metal tools which give you about 30% more per hit. Monuments and roads are tempting but skip them till you've got storage sorted, barrels can wait. When farming resources always hit the sparkly spots and deposit frequently, maybe interesting that nighttime gathering keeps you safer from other players especially early on.

Good to know:

Stone tools > location > resource
Hatchet > trees > wood
Pickaxe > rocky areas > stone
Hands > rivers > hemp
Metal pick > nodes > ore