This month:
Negotiating Your Salary

Negotiating can be viewed as a game. Yes, income is involved, so it is hard to take it too lightly. It is hard to realize that not every negotiation will work out. But, if you turn yourself inside out to make it work, sacrificing what you need, you will not be happy and it probably will not last.

• Approach your interviews as a professional who provides a service, not as an unworthy supplicant.
• Be persistent. Can you outlast your competitors? If you continually show your interest and keep their interest, you will have an advantage over other candidates who don’t follow up effectively.
• Be patient. In negotiation it is an advantage to be on the receiving end of an offer.
• Do your homework; know the salaries for jobs like this. Use networking, recruiters, job ads, industry associations and the internet (e.g., salary.com, careerjournal.com, vault.com, etc.)
• Work to have other offers in hand. Nothing will make you so attractive as if you are in demand.

• Be enthusiastic about the job, if not the salary; thee are two parts to an offer.
• Don’t behave in any way that might interfere with an ongoing business relationship with them, whether or not you end up taking the job. It does not pay to burn bridges or to leave them feeling resentful.
• Protect your interests – Get it in writing. The offer should include a title, your responsibilities, annual compensation (salary, plus benefits), a start date, and hopefully an appraisal/review schedule. Take time to consider the offer.
• Points to negotiate other than salary – Benefits (Vacation time, expense accounts, bonuses, etc.), the time of your salary review, non-salary compensation such as being able to attend conferences.

Come back next month for:
"Getting Support for Your Career Search"