Challenge: Learning Different Spanish Accents

Hi everyone!

Having more than 400 million native speakers around the world, it's obvious that one of the biggest challenges someone can face when learning the Spanish language will be dealing with its many different accents and dialects. 

Since we all agree that pronunciation is crucial if you want to become truly competent, I'd like to ask your opinion on this topic. So, for those who are currently studying Spanish: 

- How important is learning about the different Spanish accents/dialects for you? Is it key, minor, or something in between? Would you say it is enriching or a handicap?

- Are you aware of the wide range of Spanish variants depending on the native speaker's country of origin?

- Do you think it's better to learn a neutral or standard form of the language? Why?

Any other comments on this topic would be much appreciated. 

Thanks and Happy Learning!! ;)

Irene