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Negotiating a Great Salary
Once you get a job offer, the hard part is over. Now you have
to negotiate a reasonable salary. Negotiating is an art. And
one that needs to be practiced if you want to be good at it.
If you have good experience bargaining and negotiating prices
while you shop, then you have a good point to start from. But
getting a good salary is very different than getting a good
price in the market. You may want to get a friend to help you
in a little role-playing exercise so that you can practice
what you want to say and what you want to ask for.
You have to know your goals. Salary negotiating is not about
winning at all costs, but getting a salary that you are
satisfied with. Start by figuring out what the average income
is for someone with the same job and then decide what your
ideal salary and benefits would be. If you focus on your goals
instead of just winning the negotiation, then you will know
when to accept the job offer.
Sometimes you have to look beyond the salary when negotiating.
Be prepared to make some compromises. If the company does not
want to give you X amount of money, then see what extra
benefits you can get in return for less money. If you need to
move for the job, perhaps the company can help with relocation
costs. Maybe you can get extra vacation time or complete
social or health insurance. If you still aren't getting what
you want, ask for a performance review in six months time, and
get the company's commitment that if you are performing above
expectations, you will get a salary raise.
Quit while you are ahead. If you continue negotiating, even
after a good job offer, the company could just stop talks and
present an ultimatum. They could say, "accept X amount or you
get no job," and X amount could be less than the fair offer
that you had negotiated earlier. Another bad outcome is
possibly alienating your future boss. It would not be good to
have your boss resent you before you even start working. So be
sensitive and reasonable.
Once you have the negotiations complete, make sure that you
get it in writing before you finally accept the job.
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