First step to becoming a hacker: Linux!
If you're contemplating a career in cybersecurity and haven't come up to speed on Linux, now's the time to get ramped up and here's one easy way to do it. This new book from no starch press was written with people like you in mind. Authored by OccupyTheWeb, the force behind Hackers-Arise, Linux Basics for Hackers provides everything from basic Linux command line skills through to scripting, manipulating logging, network scanning, using and abusing system services, and remaining stealthy in the process.
Why Linux?
Because Linux is open source, tool developers (and you) have a level of access that is unsurpassed. Linux is transparent and this means that you can learn to manipulate it in ways that are not possible with most OSes. In addition (and undoubtedly for the reason just mentioned), most cybersecurity tools are written to run on Linux.