Its good for a first attempt, but dont be put off. It takes the average human being at least 3-6 months to become proficient in using Maya.

As meredith stated get the SimplyMaya free tutorials and have a go at these, they are good and give you a little heads up. Then go in and buy one of the DVD Packs ( I own at least 6 or 7 of them, plus one from Digital Tutors). Best to choose one that interests you. Also its a good idea to buy a book on Maya Fundementals for the version you are using. The Learning Maya Editions from Alias are very good, but average about £50 new. Amazon sell the used/nearly new versions quite cheaply.

Maya is hard work, but its really worth the effort to learn even if your only going to be a hobbiest.

I hope you enjoy it and never be scared to post your work here, its a great community of Maya Users and Experts.

Remember:

Always listen to those who are most critical of your work...
They want to see you imporve...
They are the ones who care...