You may be at the beginning of a career ladder or you may be at the end of it. You may be the new kid on the block, the new person on a board or a new resident of a retirement community. Wherever you are, you have to learn the culture, for every organization has its own way of doing things, from what type of humor is acceptable to the dress code, from who goes where for lunch to who’s in charge of what. In order to become integrated, we all need three hands: one to be held by a sponsor as we’re being pulled along the organizational ladder or introduced to others; another to hold hands with supportive peers, colleagues, other board members or residents; and the third to pull along those who will arrive after us. It is difficult to make it alone — we all need someone to lead the way, to show us the ropes, to tell us the norms, to encourage, support and make it a little easier as we try to fit in or move up the hierarchy. But who are those people, and where do we find them? They have been called benefactors, godfathers, patrons and, most often, mentors and sponsors. It is important for us to define the terms so that we can differentiate among them. Especially at work, it is important to know the difference between a sponsor and a mentor. It is one of function. A mentor is defined as “a wise and trusted teacher.” It comes from the Greek: Mentor was Odysseus’ counselor. A mentor will teach you a skill or provide you with the knowledge necessary to perform a task. A mentor may or may not be able to influence your career and need not have any particular clout in the organization. A sponsor, on the other hand, may have very little to teach you about your job but can help your career by vouching for your suitability, recommending you for special projects or taking you along on assignments. A sponsor must have influence in the organization. Whereas mentors are usually found among your immediate superiors, they can also be colleagues or anyone who can teach you. Sponsors can be your superiors too but are most frequently a few rungs up the ladder or can even be outside your organization. This happens in schools where a parent speaks on behalf of a child or on behalf of a new program; it is true in any organization where you represent someone else or someone else’s proposal. The city of La Jolla has a group that welcomes new residents with gifts and information. In a retirement community, there is a hospitality committee whose members see to it that newcomers are integrated into the community; they make sure that the new person always has someone to eat with, that questions are answered and that help is available for the minutiae of settling in. Sponsors have protégés (people they protect or speak on behalf of), while mentors have apprentices (people they teach). A mentor will help by telling you what issues to focus on at the next regional meeting; a sponsor will help by introducing you to the regional vice president. A mentor sees to it that you gain the necessary competence; a sponsor sees to it that you gain visibility and that you are promoted. Sometimes a mentor and sponsor are the same person. However, it is important to distinguish between the functions to be certain that both are filled. Each time you reach a new level, you need a mentor to teach you the ropes, but as soon as you know them, you need a sponsor to help you move up again. There are psychological reasons for becoming a mentor or sponsor. Men and women in their 50s, 60s and 70s are at a developmental stage where they need to teach and help younger colleagues. I call it occupational parenting. The gratification of helping younger people with their aspirations is very great indeed. It is important to realize that wherever we are on that organizational ladder, as we are looking for mentors and sponsors to further our goals, we can also be mentors and sponsors to those below us and help them progress in their own aspirations. In all organizations, there are newcomers, minorities, the very young, the shy. All these give us opportunities to make a difference in their lives. It behooves us all to become mentors and sponsors. This is at least as important as taking care of ourselves, and in fact, it is a way of doing just that.