Its very very simple my friend, 1st you read the rules and the 1st 10 pages of threads on meta. You then must digest all that information, then read a few more subs, find out where you fit in with your - English/Tech knowledge/Search skills - then you try to integrate in that sub and Either help people or become a valuable member,  this process takes 1-12 months dependent on your current knowledge/skills.

once the above is complete you will get regular merits. or Ignore this and End up with a few tags when you get caught buying or selling merit.