If you are a strong performer, you will look for opportunities to get high exposure projects to show your value. The goal you have is to do a good job, but isn’t it also to get noticed for your next role? At this point, you may hear that you should get yourself a mentor or sponsor to help you progress in your career. They can help you make progress faster than you would be able to do on your own.
Mentors provide perspectives for you on their experiences and give you advice when you have your own challenges. Influential sponsors can help you move even faster through the organization by giving you opportunities to meet people and putting your name in for higher level roles.
In general, you will only have one sponsor, but you don’t need to make a choice to have just one mentor. Some people have multiple mentors over their career based on what they want to learn. Both mentors and sponsors have valuable roles to play for you and it is up to you to take advantage of the opportunities that they can provide to you.
I want to share a secret with you about the best way to find mentors and sponsors. The secret is that if you have potential and you are gaining visibility, they will come find you. That doesn’t mean that you can’t approach them on your own, but when you start to gain recognition for what you can do, they will approach you. Be open to these opportunities and decide what will be the best choices to help you reach your career goals.