Is there a beginner guide or place to look for starting beyond the first couple days?

The guide to start took me a day or two. Now I have been on about a week and I feel like I am rambling through but am not sure I have things right. I am sort of making a little money in my country but not really much if you remove the beginner boost.
I am trying to move up levels for GC and have been able to, but I don't know if what I am doing hurts or helps in the long run.
Seems like new players could benefit from a guide that is Do This Week One, Then This Week Two, Next Week Three, and This Then for Week Four.
I looked on here but don't see anything that really tells me what to put for my settings or what to focus on. I see some longer term strategy, which looks helpful once I have my country moving along.

Also, should I start a CEO? It seems to tell me that it is a good idea, but I have been using the GC for population. Is a CEO worth the cost of 5 million population?

A ceo is fun imo but do not do it if you do not want one. you by no means need one ever and not in the begining. There are advantages to a ceo and you can read posts about them. Such as a way to make better corps than your nations game level would allow and faster building of corps or stockpiling arms etc.

As for what to do to get started. Everyone has a few things they like and they work well in combinations with different things but feeling out what works for you is part of the fun.

Some basic things however. Choose your corps carefully do not let the game auto build them for you that setting should be removed from the game it just hurts people in the long run.

When building a corp you want to build one with a nice supply shortage and check its selling price vrs its base price. If it is in shortage but the base price is say 500sc and even in shortage its price is say 350sc than wile there is a shortage it has not been