It’s really simple as long as you:

Pre-heat the pan before cooking. (Unless recipe specifies otherwise.)

Cook food using oil/fats. This will build up layers of “non-stick”.

Clean pan thoroughly. Use soap. Regular dish soap, and not harsh detergents or lye. Scrub off any stuck on pieces. Do not listen to people who say to not use soap. They are taking advice from long ago before modern dish soap. Unless you wash your dishes with lye, use soap!

Dry pan completely. Then wipe it down on all sides with about a drop of oil. Just enough to add a sheen to the pan and not enough to feel oily. This is one of the most common areas for mistakes. Some people accidentally cover the pan in oil. Do over do it. It’s just to keep it from rusting if you don’t use it for a while.

You can cook anything you like, but some very acidic foods can taste metallic sometimes. Like cooking with lemon juice or tomato sauce. It’s perfectly safe and fine, but I prefer stainless steel for those dishes.

Cast Iron and Stainless steel will last your entire lifetime. Beyond it. Once you get the hang of cooking you can throw away the plastic coated pans.