After take off I go straight up to good altitude.

1- trim elevator for level flight at cruise speed.
2- trim aileron for level flight at cruise speed
3- trim rudder for straight flight at cruise speed
4- once flying straight and level, at good altitude bring throttle back and let the plane just float straight - see how it reacts. Repeat a few times to see if it consistently does the same thing.
5- Then I go back up again , again cut throttle back let plane float as i feed in elevator to see how it will stall. Again, do this a few times so you get to know the plane.

6 - Once comfortable I will go inverted and see if I need to move weight forward or back(for aerobatic/3D flying).

This is simply my approach.

My focus is to keep the plane at a good altitude and work on 1 piece at a time. Key is to remain calm