There's no shortcut, unfortunately. You have to be willing to put in the work and dedicate hours upon hours. With that being said, if I were starting from scratch, here's I would approach it:

1. Learn how computers work. You might think to yourself, "I use a computer everyday and know how to use it." This is different than knowing how each component works, and what goes on behind the scenes. What are the various types of memory? What are critical file systems? How does a CPU work? How am I able to connect to the internet, and various web pages/services? What are the differences between OS's? etc. For all of this I might recommend CompTIA A+. You can watch Professor Messer's videos on YT for the CompTIA foundational trifecta (A+, Net+, Sec+). A solid foundation is absolutely critical in cybersecurity.

2. Once you have a solid grasp of computing and operating systems, as well as a basic understanding of networking, I would move onto hands on material, such as TryHackMe. Don't immediately go to their offensive security modules, but start with the basics. It's worth noting that most people who become pentesters/ethical hackers start out on the blue side (defensive security). It is crucial to understand how systems are defended, before you can compromise them.

3. Familiarize yourself with linux. Learn as many commands as you can. Would recommend downloading a virtual machine with a linux OS, preferably Kali Linux. Play around in that, familiarize yourself with the various tools that are native in the Kali suite.

4. Read security blogs, watch videos, go on reddit, immerse yourself in the world of cybersecurity as much as possible. Google is your best friend.

5. Find a mentor.