Don't cheat yourself...Erlang itself is not that hard once you understand the core principles. I will say that OTP can be overwhelming, but with tools like rebar taking care of the bulk of it for you now, it's much more accessible to beginners. The learnyousomeerlang.com guide as well as the "Erlang and OTP in Action" book are really great resources for starting out. Stick with it, you'll be glad you did.