I agree with the spirit of what you're saying, but I also think that sometimes all you've done is kicked a door open that should have been open in the first place. You don't want to undermine someone's confidence by making them feel like you did it for them. Who knows how much credit the sponsor deserves in any of these situations? All you can do is try.
Having a sponsor — someone who can use their influence to push your career forward — is invaluable. But how exactly they do this, and what your role is in making it happen, isn’t always clear-cut. Who should we be seeking to sponsor us? Should sponsors be candid with their proteges about what they’re doing on their behalf?
We pose these questions and others to Rosalind Chow, a researcher who studies sponsorship. She clarifies some of the ambiguity and talks about what should be transparent and what should stay unspoken. Then we hear how one of these relationships works between two lawyers, as well as between Nicole and Amy B.
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