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I listened to this book and found it very accessible. It was very useful to think through the differences between a mentor and a sponsor in the context of navigating a career. It is powerful when a protege has a leader that believes in them and consistently advocates on their behalf. For the proteges with aspirations, they need to deliver and not only contribute to the organization, but to perform at a level worthy of the confidence placed in them by the sponsor. This was a useful reminder of th...
Fast read with lots of thought provoking questions that made me stop and think. Hewlett provides an interesting perspective on why women don’t make it to the c-suite: because we assume our hard work will be recognized rather than find people to advocate for us. Hewlett breaks down the difference between mentors and sponsors while also providing a road map to securing a sponsor and what it means to be a protege. I’ve heard for years “you need a sponsor” and this book makes that distinction more c...
This book goes against every fundamental belief I have for what it means to be a good employee. To paraphrase, Hewlett states that it's more important to be a "loyal protege" than be productive. The secret to being a leader with vitality is also, apparently, having "toned arms."Frankly, I've gotten much better advice from my mentors.
This book was the initial book club selection for a grassroots women’s empowerment initiative at my company and I was not impressed. The book focuses mainly on “building a castle” which assumes that essentially the only way for women and minorities to achieve success in their careers is to foster mutually beneficial relationships with sponsors in the c-suite (and apparently only shoot for the c-suite) which is incredibly unrealistic. This book is filled with elitist pontificating dispensing basi...
The book is easy reading and accessible but at the same time controversial. Mostly, may seem to be counterintuitive to the idea of working hard and getting noticed / promoted solely on this basis.Let's be clear upfront: sponsors choose top performers who will get things done so make no mistake in thinking having a backup is all you need to be successful. However, you should understand that sometimes hard work is not enough to get to the next level. In times of high competition and reorgs, it's e...
I like the distinction between mentor and sponsor - but that's about all I liked about the book. I got the audiobook for free and it was short at least.
Good read for professionals - mentors are great but what really amplifies your career will be sponsors who advocate you & speak up for you when you're up for promotions and other opportunities.
Very interesting concepts that I look forward to using. My one frustration with this book is one I have with basically every nonfiction self-improvement book out there. Gender-neutral language exists and we all know how to use it. It will also appeal to cisgender folx. Instead of switching between he/she and potentially alienating readers or gendering this book too much they could have used THEY. This seemed to lean on feminine pronouns but still swapped throughout like they couldn't decide thei...
Find a Sponsor - Who’s pulling for you? Who’s got your back? Who’s putting your hat in the ring? Odds are this person is not a mentor but a sponsor. Mentors can build your self-esteem and provide a sounding board—but they’re not your ticket to the top. If you’re interested in fast-tracking your career, what you need is a sponsor—a senior-level champion who believes in your potential and is willing to advocate for you as you pursue that next raise or promotion. This a mutually benefited relations...
Really good book that upfront outlines the differences between mentors and sponsors, why you should have both, and common pitfalls that can happen when you only rely on one or the other. There are many real-world stories (a few names changed for privacy) to help illustrate the concepts as well.One issue I did have concerns the vocabulary chosen. It is not uncommon for the author to use phrases or colloquialisms that may not be easily understood by a global audience (even myself who is a native E...
3.5 stars. Maybe it’s because I’m not as ambitious as the target audience. Although there are plenty of good points, I wonder how many can actually accomplish all that this book says is required to make it. The author seems to suggest if you make it to the top, you have it all. I’m not sure that’s possible (to have a super busy work life and fulfilling family/ home life). This book, however is not about how to achieve dreams while putting family first. She seems to suggest if work is great, all
Great ideas. Gave me an interesting spin on the "it's who you know" thought process. Many people forget to continue networking and that assistance is needed throughout your career. Lessons learned:The idea of mentoring is fine but having someone who can sponsor you is better.One must be able to express one's self and produce results. That's an easy task with help from a sponsor.Being a protege has bi-directional advantages.Anyone, no matter the stage in your career, can benefit from this book.
I am not sure I am exactly the target audience for this book, but I got some valuable lessons for my career none the less. Despite the title, it turns out that having a mentor matters. The book offers useful suggestions on how to use the mentor and the sponsors(s) to get ahead in your career.One thing that scares me is this constant mention of overdeliver and over-prepare (there are mentions of weekends and holidays spent on work). It makes it look like you can make progress only if you work aro...
The book was a hard read. Here are some of the insights I gained from the book:Don't wait to be assigned projects, but act like a leader and leaders would take you under your wings.Executive (leadership) Presence comprises of 3 main pillars: How you act (gravitas aka how serious), how you speak (communication), how you look (appearance). Gravitas - 67% (confidence and grace under fire aka keeping your cool, decisiveness, EQ, vision)Communication - 28%Appearance - 5%
As the title says, this book that makes the distinction between a mentor and a sponsor. While it is helpful to have mentors to bounce ideas off of, it is a sponsor that is most impactful in ones career ascent. This book describes some of the necessary steps to work through to position yourself for finding a sponsor and holding up your end of the relationship. You help to make sponsors look good...which is part of the deal.
It's the serious version of "How To Be Successful Without Hurting Men's Feelings". There's definitely some mixed messaging and a lot of encouraging of women to just be like men in the men's business realm. Ew. The book has more ick to it than real, practical actionable advice. Worthwhile take-aways: Try to find people in your career to mentor you and also to really go to bat for you when you need an advocate. (The book did not bother to really give good help on how to do this.)
This book outlined the principles behind why it's critical to have a sponsor, and I'm appreciative of the fact that I read this and still have "time" to implement. However the book isn't super nitty gritty on scripts/practical steps, moreso telling you to earn it and get noticed first.However, it is still written by a straight white woman, and why is she telling me that her defined biceps were key to being seen as competent?
The book has a lot of candid good advice and a clear point of view. Its target audience is women & minorities but others may learn quite a bit too. While I really resonated with this book, I don't think everyone will - for example, if you have firm ideas about what mentorship is and how it's beneficial to you, you may not agree with a lot of what the author says.
This is a necessary book and one that I wish I've read earlier in my career. There are differences between a mentor and a sponsor, and that I understood. But this books goes beyond that. By reading and reflecting on this book's concepts, I understood that the sponsorships I've gotten so far happened by accident. They have been executives that saw my work, benefitted from it; executives that saw potential in me and therefore, decided to invest in my career. Because of that, I thought and operated...
Lessons learnt and potential spoilers:-Asking questions as ‘What’s your currency?’ is the heartbeat to understanding how the protégé and sponsor can both bring value to the table. -know your role as a protege and when you take, you must give -The top indicator of executive presence is “grace under fire”