2nd shave went far better

This time i took a nice hot shower with shave soap and hair conditioner as advised. then stropped my razor (didnt cut the strop on my first try)(followed instructions sent with the strop by whipped dog). Shaving ended with only one little cut and almost no irritation. Glad i made the switch to straight razors. still not going to attempt cutting the hair around my goatee with it until i can go with out cutting myself.
thanks for the pointers over the past couple weeks guys. I think some of the problems I had yesterday came from letting my beard grow out for a few days.

I have a goatee too.
My XTG stroke starts at my ear and finishes against the side of the goatee. Some people start from the goatee but when starting out I found the idea of beginning by trying to come in steeply by the goatee a bit daunting.
Try various things and find what works best for you. I would encourage you to try both hands if you haven't already :)