Be very bold before you get too old. If not the odds are stacked against you!
No seriously:
I would suggest planning some long trips straight away. Just pottering in your local area won't achieve much at this stage. Hiring club planes can be a problem for overnights (if that is your situation) but if your trips are long enough, they probably won't mind (some clubs insist on 2 to 3 hours min hire per day). Check out the cross-country requirements for the commercial licence and get these out of the way in the early days.
Assuming you live in the UK, and you now have your PPL (congratulations), France is well within your capabilities, go for it! Within 2 weeks of getting my PPL I did a 395nm flight. It did wonders for my overall confidence.
Good luck!