The Key to Negotiating the Salary You Deserve

Negotiating the salary you deserve comes down to this.

You deserve a raise. You've spent years acquiring the education, skills and experience you need to deliver high value to employers. And you've made an impact to the organizations where you've worked. But you wonder how exactly to negotiate the salary you deserve?

Name one good reason for you to earn less than industry average for your level of education and experience in your region. Unless you are under-performer (in which case, you wouldn't be reading this blog) you deserve at least average compensation for your performance.

Are you convinced you are worth it now? Good. Now, you want to get a clear picture of the range your skillset and experience is worth in your part of the world. I'll share where to find that information and how to answer the dreaded, "How much do you earn now?" question.

Key number 1 to negotiating the salary you deserve is to have the data. Industry salary information is widely available and provides a handy and impartial framework for beginning the negotiations.

Start with Salary.com. It's the industry leading site for free salary calculators. It allows you to identify education, experience and skill levels, in addition to zeroing in on specific industries and regions.

Payscale.com is another handy site for identifying average salaries. This site also includes evaluations for job offers, so you can see "what if" scenarios too. 

So, how do you handle that unnerving question about what you make now? And why is that question part of negotiating the salary, much less required on some forms? Maybe you are in a job that doesn't make the most of your skills and abilities and you're looking for one that does? How is the current job any indicator of what you're worth in a bigger, better job?

The short answer is, it isn't. Here's my big secret for how to answer the request for current salary info - "I expect to earn market rate for my experience and skills." Simple, clear and professional. Who wouldn't expect to earn market rate, right? You don't want to work for someone who isn't willing to pay market rate for the value you deliver.

Arm yourself with the data for your market value and go into salary negotiation with knowledge, power and confidence. If you'd like to have a private conversation about your salary negotiation, schedule a free 15 minute coaching session with me here.