what’s something every media industry person should do before they’re 30?
Try and get as much varied experience as possible. I've been lucky enough to work a variety of roles at Essence, and I also went and worked for 4 months at an ad tech company to add some depth to my technical knowledge, and I'd say that the greater the breadth of the experience I've gained, the more confident I've been in choosing an area in which to specialise. Plus the broader knowledge can come in handy, especially with tough clients!
Oh, and go get drunk at some awards dos. That's only going to get more embarrassing the older you get.
If you could only take one thing to a desert island, what would you choose and why?
I was tempted to say a guitar, but that's too easy so I think actually I'd rather take a harp. For starters, it would take me ages to teach myself how to play it, so that would keep me busy for a while. Once I've learnt how to play it, I can then while away the days waiting for a boat to come, entertaining myself with badly interpreted covers. Plus, if you break one string on a guitar it's infuriating, but I feel like you could break a lot more on a harp before it would become unplayable (and, unless I'm going to a desert island with a music shop, that's a very important consideration!)
