Negotiate Your Way to a Better Salary

Home
>
Negotiation
>
Negotiate Your Way to a Better Salary

Negotiate Your Way to a Better Salary

1. Be persuasive: It's hard to force your boss to increase your compensation, and trying to do so can potentially damage your working relationship. On the other hand, it's much easier to persuade her or him that it might benefit the organisation to pay you more, and that doing so will likely improve the way you deal with each other going forward.

2. Aim high, and be realistic: Many researchers have found a strong correlation between people's aspirations and the results they achieve in negotiation. At the same time, you want to suggest ideas to which your boss can realistically say yes.

3. Start off with the right tone: To be persuasive, you want to let your boss know that you will listen and seek to understand his or her views. At the same time, you expect your boss to do the same for you, so you can work together to address this issue. Avoid ultimatums, threats, and other coercive behaviour.

4. Clarify your interests: Your compensation should satisfy a range of needs, not just salary. Make sure you have thought about other types of compensation that would be valuable as well - like profit sharing, stock options that vest immediately, a bonus, greater work responsibilities, a quicker promotion schedule, increased vacation, or flexible hours.

5. Anticipate their interests: Just like you, your boss has needs and concerns of her or his own to satisfy. To persuade them to say yes, your ideas will have to address those interests.

6. Create several options: Joint brainstorming is the most effective way to find ideas that satisfy everyone's interests. Brainstorming works best when you separate it from commitment - first create possible solutions, then decide among them.

7. Focus on objective criteria: It is far easier to persuade someone to agree with your proposal if they see how that proposal is firmly grounded on objective criteria, such as what similar firms pay people of like experience, or what others in the firm make.

8. Think through your alternatives: In case you cannot persuade your boss to say yes, you need to have a Plan B to satisfy your interests. Part of preparation is creating a specific action plan so that you know what you'll do if you have to walk away from the table.

9. Prepare thoughtfully to achieve your goals: This is the only aspect of your negotiations you can completely control. To take advantage of all the above advice, you have to invest a significant amount of your time and energy.

10. Review to learn: The only way you can really improve your ability to negotiate is to explicitly learn from your experiences. After you finish negotiations, reflect on what you did that worked well, and what you might want to do differently.

Poonam A Ashara, is a 23 year old from India with 1 year of experience in "Human Resource Development". By qualification, she is Bachelor of Commerce and Masters in Business Administration.

In The News:

Yahoo! News: Top Stories

Georgia Sen. Chambliss wins re-election in runoff (AP)

AP - Georgia Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss handed the GOP a firewall against Democrats eager to flex their newfound political muscle in Washington, winning a bruising runoff battle Tuesday night that had captured the national limelight.

Rice arrives in India in wake of Mumbai attacks (AP)

AP - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday in Washington's effort to ease tensions in the region after a three-day terrorist attack that left 171 people dead in Mumbai.

Gates: Military looks to accelerate Iraq pullout (AP)

AP - Defense Secretary Robert Gates signaled a willingness Tuesday to forge ahead with two key priorities for the incoming Obama administration: accelerating the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and shutting down the Guantanamo Bay detention center.

Auditors fault Treasury oversight of bailout funds (AP)

AP - The government must toughen its monitoring of the $700 billion financial bailout to ensure that banking institutions limit their top executives' pay and comply with other restrictions, federal auditors said Tuesday in the first comprehensive review of the rescue package.

2 arrested in alleged torture of teen, who escaped (AP)

AP - A Girl Scout leader and her husband were arrested after an emaciated, terrified and nearly naked 17-year-old showed up at a gym with a chain locked to his ankle, saying he had just fled his captors, authorities said Tuesday.

Divorce rate increases in Marine Corps, Army (AP)

AP - The divorce rate among soldiers and Marines increased last year as military marriages suffered continuing stress from America's two ongoing wars. There were an estimated 10,200 failed marriages in the active duty Army and 3,077 among Marines, according to figures obtained by The Associated Press for the budget year ended Sept. 30.

Newly released Nixon-era memo shows aides dishing dirt on critics (AP)

AP - In Richard Nixon's time, all the president's men fretted about threats on every front: disquiet out on the streets, disloyalty inside the administration and trouble from political opponents who had to be discredited at any cost.

Study flunks 49 states in college affordability (AP)

AP - An independent report on American higher education flunks all but one state when it comes to affordability an embarrassing verdict that is unlikely to improve as the economy contracts.

Beyonce to perform at Essence Fest in New Orleans (AP)

AP - Beyonce is the first artist lined up for next year's Essence Music Festival in New Orleans.

Murphy's tip in lifts Pacers over Lakers, 118-117 (AP)

AP - Danny Granger scored 32 points and led Indiana back from a 15-point fourth-quarter deficit, and Troy Murphy tipped in a missed shot at the buzzer to complete an improbable 118-117 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.

Rice arrives in India to ease tension with Pakistan (Reuters)

Reuters - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday as part of urgent U.S. efforts to ease tension between India and Pakistan that has surged over the Mumbai attacks.

South Korea steps up crisis fight (Reuters)

Reuters - South Korea moved on Wednesday to help local banks through a cash crunch gripping the global financial system as central banks around the world were expected to cut interest rates again to support their fast flagging economies.

Automakers' desperate bailout plea gaining support (Reuters)

Reuters - A top lawmaker predicted Washington would approve a bailout for U.S. automakers after they submitted survival plans, and General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC said they needed an immediate infusion of cash to avoid failures.

Obama wrapping up cabinet picks with Richardson (Reuters)

Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama moved swiftly toward wrapping up his cabinet appointments on Wednesday with the selection of rival-turned-supporter Bill Richardson as secretary of commerce.

Republicans win crucial Georgia Senate seat (Reuters)

Reuters - Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss easily won a run-off election in Georgia on Tuesday, denying Democrats the chance for a 60-seat "super majority" in the Senate that would have enabled them to pass legislation virtually at will.

Pentagon chief Gates backs Obama Iraq policy (Reuters)

Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who will stay on under Barack Obama, said on Tuesday he supported the president-elect's Iraq policy but declined to back his proposed timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces.

Clinton for a Clinton? Senate guessing game begins (Reuters)

Reuters - New York Gov. David Paterson has famous names to choose from in picking a replacement for Sen. Hillary Clinton, including a Kennedy, a Cuomo and even another Clinton, as in the former president of the United States.

NATO agrees cautious re-warming of Russia ties (Reuters)

Reuters - NATO agreed on Tuesday to gradually resume contacts with Russia suspended after Moscow's intervention in Georgia, and put off a decision on putting Ukraine and Georgia on formal membership tracks.

Thai protesters abandon airports as flights due in (AFP)

AFP - Hundreds of anti-government protesters packed up and left Bangkok's airports on Wednesday after a crippling siege, as authorities assured angry tourists that flights would resume within 24 hours.

Rice arrives in India after Mumbai attacks (AFP)

AFP - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in New Delhi Wednesday to try and ease India-Pakistan tensions over the Mumbai attacks, as US intelligence blamed a Pakistan-based militant group.

Negotiate Your Way to a Better Salary

Negotiation Negotiation