Being a keen hill walker, I know the importance of a good map. And, while it may be a little clichéd to use the map analogy in terms of career planning, it still rings true.

When starting out in a career, it is a good idea to know where you want to end up. While there is a need to be flexible, having a direction or goal is important as it gives a sense of purpose and achievement and will help you maintain momentum.

While I had no idea where I would end up when I took my first steps in the working world, I knew I wanted to be on the fast track. There were points where I did not know what I was going to do next, but once I had entered consultancy, I had a pretty good idea of where I would end up. I achieved it at a young age and at one point I made a relatively major career shift from public affairs to mainstream PR. So, to use my clichéd metaphor, I never changed my destination, but I certainly changed my route.

Too many people dribble on in a job that is not right for them. Sometimes because of misplaced loyalty or by forgetting who is in control, which means they hang on in the wrong job just a bit too long. Your career is your own and you can only achieve things by making them happen for yourself. There is no substitute for experience – and it all helps in reaching the destination. While you might have in mind that you want to be head of PR for a multinational company and your thought is you can just work your way up through the organisation, if something comes along that broadens your experience, you could take it and go back later. It is amazing how much more someone is valued once they are gone, and even more so when they come back with a different perspective!

Doing the unexpected in your career is not necessarily a bad thing either. By dropping out of the fast track for a while and taking a different role you might discover hidden talents or passions, or even just expand your horizons, bringing a fresher outlook on your goals. And none of us can ignore the work/life balance – a vital element. And I shall confess here that as a keen graduate, I thought the notion of work/life balance utter nonsense and listened to no one about it! In many ways it is just good luck that I found it – though I am now its most passionate advocate.

The best PR person is someone who has breadth of perspective, the ability to think on their feet and, I am afraid, common sense. These things all come with time, practice and experience. And the wider that experience is, the better the skills will be.

To give an example from Edinburgh – the city hosts a dozen festivals a year. Each of these has its own press office/PR role and they provide great short-term experience of working in a fast-paced environment. The hitch for many people is that the jobs are always short-term contracts. But they offer a superb experience hit and look great on the CV. So it’s worth taking the plunge maybe once, to get that experience, then get back into the mainstream. The same goes for any short-term contracts in our industry. You do not know where they will take you, but sometimes to jump in the deep end on something high profile is worth it for the skills acquisition.

So, have a destination in mind, work towards it, but don’t be afraid of distractions that might change the route, as they can all provide experience. And experience, whether good or bad, is often life-changing and always valuable.