HBR Guide to Getting the Mentoring You Need (HBR Guide Series)

Chapter 2

Mentoring in All Its Shapes and Sizes

by Amy Gallo

When you think of mentoring, do you envision a sage executive counseling a junior upstart for years and years? It doesn’t usually work that way anymore. Over the past few decades, mentoring has evolved into guidance and support from all kinds of sources—yet our collective thinking about it hasn’t changed with the times. Here’s a roundup of four dated but persistent myths you’ll need to push past to grow and advance in your career.

Myth #1: You have to find one perfect mentor

It’s actually rare to get through your career with only one mentor; most people today have several. So it makes sense that Boston University management professor Kathy Kram prefers the term developmental network: ...