A mentor is a person who gives a protégé advice, answers questions, strategizes career moves and professional development. A sponsor is someone who promotes a protégé to other people to help advance the protégé’s career.
(Women in Leadership: Persistent Barriers to Gender Equality in the C-Suite (uwo.ca)) “In some cases, women are over-mentored and under-sponsored,” says Jeffery, who explains that mentorship is “when people speak to you” while sponsorship involves “people speaking about you.”
Share your ideas by responding to any of these question prompts or the essence of this topic.
• Share your story and be vulnerable about your doubts around leadership. You'll inspire others to step out of their comfort zone.
• Visionaries are those who have the time to care for others and move their careers/life forward.
• Women in Leadership means opening doors and setting the stage for others who may not have mentors and sponsors.
• It’s so important for us to look at educators with a ‘growth’ lens – to see a spark and talent that someone else has to influence others and take the plunge to lift that person up.
• I am so fortunate to have strong mentorship opportunities as I embark in my new system leadership role. Strangely I miss being in the position of being ‘the mentor’; however, understanding the mentorship/sponsor dynamic makes me realize that I am having an impact as a sponsor.
• What strengths are you looking for this month as you celebrate an sponsor women in leadership?
• As WiL, how are you making leadership appealing? What do you showcase to entice women to take the risk, dare to lead?
• A vital role of educational leaders is mentoring and sponsoring upcoming leaders who will change the face of education – empowering them to rise-up.
• Are you a mentor, a sponsor or both? How do I support, guide, coach and celebrate people to reach for leadership roles?
• WiL: mentor – build each other, sponsor – promote excellent women as leaders…pay it forward …someone did for you #CASSWil
• Pass it forward! Be open and aware to the “affective influential potential” of those in your system and spread their good news #mentorship#sponsorship
• To foster effective leadership, first acknowledge any existing bias.
• There are usually many paths to the same goal.
• Let’s celebrate women in leadership.
• Promoting and sponsoring other women needs to become the norm not the exception.
• Women supporting women! Look around you. Who can you mentor or ask to be your mentor? #womengrowth
• Early sponsorship can plant the seed of self-belief.
• Who speaks to me…Who do I speak to…Who do I speak about.
• How intentional are we about mentoring the great people we work with?