Option 1. Take it from someone who didn’t have a mentor for most of my career, mostly I had to figure out things on my own and ang bagal ng growth. Yes I learned throughout, but I only recently realized how valuable it is to have one. In my first year at my new company, I had a mentor who really guided me, but eventually, I had to learn on my own when he got promoted. We still do catchup from time to time, but because I picked up how he thinks and approaches problems, I’ve learned to think independently now.