Hi ,
Beginners have to focus on,
When I decided to start playing a short time ago... I learned the basic chords A B C D E F G...along with alot of simple extra chords like Am Dm etc...and after I got good at playing those in any order without hesitation I started out trying to play songs that had easy chords. Most songs I played had 3 or 4 chords. After playing those for about a year I changed my mind and wanted to try and learn the lead guitar parts. I feel it is very important to learn chords before playing lead guitar riffs. It helps you to understand the different sounds on the fret board and build up speed which you will need in the future.
Jeanguitar
http://totallyguitars.com