I'm CERTAINLY not a pro detailer but - how I started was....I just started. Just sort of jumped into it after doing lots of research on line. Lots of hands on trial and error for the most part - along with screwing some things up and figuring out what I did wrong and what I could do differently next time. Honestly, with the amount of information on line in today's day and age, I really believe you can "teach yourself" to a certain extent. There is an enormous amount of information here and on other on-line detailing web sites.
Although, this site is the best one of course :clap2:
Tapping into people's knowledge on sites like this one is invaluable. It's a huge asset to have this type of info at your finger tips.
What I did, right after I purchased my first PC, was go to the bone yard and grab a fender and a hood. I practiced on them like crazy until I was comfortable enough to try the things I learned on my own vehicle. Then, you can branch out from there...family, friends etc etc.
It can be a long learning curve and it certainly can be overwhelming with the amount of different products out there but if you keep it fairly simple at first, stick with one product for each step (or maybe even one product line for each step at first) you'll be surprised how much you can learn. Hands on practice is the best teacher in this field.
