Don‘t just accumulate knowledge, apply it. You will never really know or understand something until you use it. Make little demo programs that use the things you are learning. Actually do the exercises at the end of the chapters in the books.
Play a lot of games. Doing so will give you ideas and help you make better games. It will also provide a welcome relief from programming.
Help others. You will get to the point where you can help others out, and you will learn more yourself through the teaching process.
Finish what you start. Don‘t fall into the trap of thinking "I know I can finish this game, but I have an idea for a better one, so I‘ll move on to it instead." You will learn so much more if you finish the games you start, and you will have something to prove that you are not all talk. To make this a little easier, don‘t try to make really big or complex games until you are more experienced.
