A 10-question test to take before you volunteer for anything else

Being handed more responsibility can feel like a vote of confidence. Often it is. But it can also mean you've become the person everything gets routed to, which is a very different thing from being the person whose growth is planned.

That distinction carries real weight, because of who ends up getting sponsored. According to McKinsey and LeanIn's 2025 Women in the Workplace report, only 31% of women at the entry level have a sponsor, versus 45% of men, and the promotion gap is similar: 93 women move up to manager for every 100 men. Extra work with no sponsor and no defined next role attached doesn't build a runway. Think of it as a parking lot where at least the view is nice.

Respond to each of the ten statements below with a simple yes or no. Be honest with yourself, because the only person grading this is you. It takes about four minutes. The conversation it prompts takes roughly ten, and it's the one many women in Greater Hartford keep postponing for a year.

The tick-off list

Point A. A leader above me has stated, out loud, which role I'm being groomed for.

Point B. The new work came bundled with something concrete: a title, a budget, decision rights, or a team.

Point C. I present my own work to people a level above my manager at least once a quarter.

Point D. "Next step" has a date attached to it, even an approximate one.

Point E. When my manager introduces me to people, I hear phrases like "the one who'll be leading" a function.

Point F. Each time new responsibilities arrived, an existing task quietly disappeared from my plate.

Point G. The work I've been assigned shows up in promotion cases at my company: revenue, a P&L, a launch, a turnaround.

Point H. I keep a written development plan, and at least one colleague other than me has actually gone through it.

Point I. When I ask what's missing for promotion, I get specifics rather than "keep doing what you're doing."

Point J. I am aware whether I appear in talent discussions, and which people speak up about me when I do.

Your score

8 to 10 yes: Headlights on. Someone is developing you deliberately. To make it simple for your advocates to speak on your behalf, keep a running record of your accomplishments and keep your target timeline in plain view.

4 to 7 yes: Mist. Some of this is deliberate growth and some of it is simply being overlooked, and your manager may not be able to tell the two apart. At your next one-on-one, ask: "What role is this work setting me up for, and when will we revisit it?" Note the reply along with the date. If you get a fuzzy answer two times running, read it as a no that no one is willing to state outright.

0 to 3 yes: Idle lot. Your reliability is the reason the work keeps coming your way, and your low visibility is the reason the promotion keeps passing you by. Pause accepting new assignments this month unless they include one of the items from questions 2, 5 or 7. Then start looking for a sponsor, which begins with asking a senior leader for advice on something specific and following up once you've acted on it. Local women's networks such as the ones run through regional chambers can be a useful place to find those introductions.

Your path forward, whatever your band

Pick the three "no" answers you could most realistically turn into "yes" over the next 90 days. Questions 3 and 9 frequently make that shortlist, and you can act on both starting this week.

Your outcome? Share this with the woman on your team who is silently covering everyone else's workload, and invite her to answer the questions too.