Well I like you xD

It's a good idea to avoid tuts for the purpose of coming up with your own style and making a space for yourself in originality, though on the other hand tuts ( well written ones) tend to be jam packed with great advice/tips that could deff help you improve even in your own style.

You don't have to copy a tut to get the good hints found in them, such as using the burn and dodge tools or how to use curve properly.
I would suggest though if you really wish to enjoy yourself and make some really fun shiz, try getting your hands on PS. It's a wonderful tool and can bring upon a new feeling in yourself as well as new style in your own work.

The flaws I could point out in your piece and might be considered universal in style would be that your text is distracting, it's in a colour not used in the rest of your tag, it's hard to read and you have effects on it, which in most cases is a big fat no-no :P
The overall colours you have chosen would be very fun if not so restricted and had a gradent or two in here to better helps spread the feeling of belonging together.

Great placement of ytour focal and fun enough fractal designs, though that blue dot over your birds head is very distracting, in some cases might be a positive, in this case I have no clue what it is and it's colour is too harsh. LOL what is it brah ?

I will give you a little something of myself, I didn't bother to read other kinds of tuts, and I got stuck making sigs for almost 2 yrs before I finally progressed, though not a complete waste of time, I still wish I would have read those other tuts so I could have progressed a lot faster.
Remember an artist should never be restricted by choice, the artist should be allowed to wander as far as their mind will take them before they ever give in to fin!!!!