What has walking got to do with career development?

At first glance, walking and career development might seem worlds apart, one a simple physical act, the other a complex professional journey. But after going through a 40-days walking challenge, which serendipitously coincided with preparing for and launching this year’s Prosper postdoc career development cohort at the University of Liverpool, I have come to realise that the parallels between the two are striking. Here are some reflections that have slowly surfaced and crystallised in my mind in the past month and half. 

In walking, progress happens step by step. Some stretches are smooth, some uphill, and sometimes you only notice how far you’ve come when you pause and look back.

Career development isn’t much different. Skills accumulate gradually, confidence builds unevenly, and the path rarely follows the straight line you imagined.

If you think you aren’t moving fast enough, consider the pace of walking: slow, steady, determined. Sustainable progress rarely happens in leaps, it’s built through small, intentional actions over time: working on a new strategy recently discovered and noticing how it affects your work-life balance; being able to talk more openly about a challenge and realising that confidence is made up of internal and external factors in a contrasting yet compound effect; identifying your values and skills and slowly finding clarity on what you want out a job.

Career development isn’t a sprint. It’s a long-distance hike.

Walking with someone changes the experience. Even if you’re not shoulder-to-shoulder, the sense of companionship shapes the journey. Having someone beside you makes the path feel less lonely; someone walking thousand miles away is still as supportive because of the shared struggles.

Career development is the same. Mentors, peers, collaborators, alumni, professional networks, all form part of the “walking group” that helps you navigate twists and turns. You don’t have to be physically close: a cohort, a buddy group, a online coaching group, connect you with others who are navigating similar terrain.

The point is not to walk alone. Career development grows best through shared stories, advice exchanged, opportunities spotted together, and mutual encouragement. Someone else’s route doesn’t need to be your route, but their presence makes your own journey more navigable.

Walking gives you something precious that life notoriously lacks: mental space. Walking slows you down just enough to notice what you actually want. Movement helps ideas settle.

Career development has the same effect. Distance from your desk and your day-to-day tasks sharpens perspective. When your mind is busy dealing with reading, experiments, deadlines, fellowships, and teaching, that clarity is gold.

For me, walking did exactly that: it gave me the space to think about my own job, my role as a researcher developer, and my responsibilities towards the cohort members in creating space for them to go through the cogwheels of a career development journey.

A career path isn’t just about opportunities; it’s also about orientation. You can walk for miles without realising you’ve drifted off the trail unless you stop to check where you are.

Postdoc life has a similar risk. You become so focused on the next paper or next contract that you forget to ask bigger, grounding questions:

• What matters most to me professionally?
• What am I good at that I actually enjoy?
• What drains me?
• Where do I want to be heading?

Career development creates a natural pause for these conversations, with yourself or with someone you trust.

Most of the time, when we walk, we don’t have the entire journey planned. We simply know the next landmark: the next turn, the next hill, the next place to rest.

Career development works exactly the same way. You don’t need a ten‑year plan. You need the next step: the next opportunity that aligns with your values, curiosity, or goals. The rest unfolds as you go. And that’s not uncertainty; that’s exploration.

Quite a lot, in fact. Walking mirrors the pace, reflection, and incremental progress that shape a career development journey. It teaches patience, presence, and perspective.

So the next time you feel stuck or overwhelmed by career questions, get your walking shoes on and go for a walk. Your career path might not become instantly clear, but your mind will be, and that’s always the right direction to start in.