Tanq wrote:
At the moment, I think mining and herbalism are the most profitable.
While I don't disagree with you, for a new player, taking both mining and herbalism can be tricky. You can only have either the mining tracker or herbalism tracker going - not both. So you either have to keep switching back and forth between trackers, have enough experience to know where the various nodes spawn, or use an add-on that keeps track of where the nodes spawn. Again, not impossible, but it could be confusing to someone new to the game.
This is why I would recommend for a new player to take either mining or herbalism and skinning. Skinning doesn't have a "tracker" - you just skin beast-type mobs that you kill or are lying around from other kills. Stacks of skins, especially the higher-level ones, sell for a decent amount on the auction house.
I think because of all the jewelers right now that mining and skinning might be a good choice.
Don't forget you can take all of the secondary trade skills as well - fishing, cooking, and first aid. Many folks here swear by fishing as a good ongoing moneymaker.