Hi @zcgolf16. I thought about it for quite a long time before I actually got started on it. I finally made the leap once I felt that I had established myself in the community, and was being recognized as someone that was adding value. If/when you decide to become a witness, I highly recommend you check out this setup guide: https://steemit.com/witness-category/@bitcalm/how-to-become-a-witness. It is a tiny bit out of date at this point, but it is 95% of what you need to at least get started.
As far as first steps, I would say that you need to find your own unique way to add value to the community based on the talents/skills that you have to offer. If you start with that, and continue doing it throughout your witness career, you should be fine :)