Getting There

Success rarely follows a straight line—and mentors aren’t always easy to find when you need them.

Getting There: A Book of Mentors brings together firsthand accounts from thirty accomplished people across business, media, the arts, science, and public life, each describing the turns, setbacks, and decisions that shaped their path.

Rather than a single prescriptive framework, the book offers short, direct essays that focus on what actually happened: early missteps, hard calls, unexpected opportunities, and the habits and principles that held up over time.

The throughline is practical—how people navigated uncertainty, handled failure, and learned to keep moving when the outcome wasn’t clear.

The mentors span a wide range of fields, including figures such as Warren Buffett, Anderson Cooper, Frank Gehry, Marina Abramović, Sara Blakely, and Michael Bloomberg. The variety is part of the point: readers can compare different routes to achievement and see how common themes show up in very different careers. 

Written and compiled by Gillian Zoe Segal—who is also a photographer—the book pairs these narratives with portraits, making it both a collection of voices and a visual record of the people behind them. It’s designed for readers at multiple stages, from students weighing next steps to professionals looking for perspective on a pivot, a setback, or a new goal.

“Life-changing, real-world advice.” —Vanity Fair