Are you looking for a way to increase your earnings? Nothing is quite as effective as requesting a pay rise. Unfortunately, being able to negotiate can be an intimidating task. Still, with the right timing, preparation, and communication strategies, you'll be in a solid position to make your case to your current or potential employer. Here, we've collated some essential steps that will help you determine when it's time to ask for more and how best to approach negotiations so that both parties are satisfied with the outcome.
Know your worth/Do your research - You may think you've got it all, massively overestimating your value. After all, you see yourself working every day, and you are your star witness when it comes to going above and beyond. Or you may think you're underperforming; you can be your worst critic. Researching your value can provide clarity to these thoughts. There are many sites and tools that you can use to insert your years of experience and skills to see your worth. This can be useful when comparing your salary to other roles available, especially when speaking with your employer, which we'll get to later.
Practice, practice, practice - Ensure you're doing your job well. It is no surprise that you're more likely to get passed up for a pay rise if you're making mistakes, underperforming, or are an unreliable team member. It's crucial to examine your performance at work. Have you been taking the initiative? Exceeding expectations? Making meaningful contributions? These demonstrate that you are ready for more responsibility (and more money) and ensure your boss knows they can trust and depend on you. Showing up late or leaving early and lack of effort will not help support the case for asking for a pay rise. Remember, prove to your employer that you are worth the investment! To help, jot down your weaknesses, and list how you can improve your job and work ethic. Work on them; you might uncover a solution that your boss might take a liking to. Lastly, give it time. You have to become more efficient and valuable over the months genuinely.
Stay positive - Most people visualize a nice diagonal line when thinking about progression; in reality, the day-to-day journey is bumpier. Success stems from solving problems, and your attitude towards problems determines how bumpy your progression is. Visualize yourself overcoming them; see them as opportunities to improve your quality of work and overall value. Another technique is to stay humble during this process, healthy competition is productive, but obsessive comparison can quickly become toxic, especially in time-sensitive working conditions. Helping your colleagues adds volumes of value to your reputation, both professionally and personally. Colleagues explaining your value to the boss, keeping humble, and changing the way you view problems are all sure ways to keep the bumps along the road of progression to a minimum.
But sometimes all the above isn't enough.
Don't be afraid to ask - When it comes to asking for a pay rise, fear can be the most significant impediment. You may be scared of hearing a flat refusal, causing offence or undue disruption in your workplace. But sometimes, the only way to achieve what you want is to put yourself out there and ask for it. Sure, your employer might not be prioritizing salary increases at the moment, but if you take the initiative, you may find that their attitude changes. If it's a no after you ask, keep your cool and ask what you need to work on. If you get a helpful answer, repeat points 2 and 3 until you feel you've mastered everything before asking again. Ask only a few times, though; leave a good amount of time between asking. To help your case, you could propose any solutions you've found when looking to increase job efficiency and mention that the average salary for X is X amount. Finally, you could ask for a pay rise to match inflation if all else fails. Requesting a pay rise to help cover the costs of inflation is often overlooked as an option, but it's one worth pursuing. Researching the current economic climate and digging into what experts are saying about your profession can help present a compelling case for why you deserve higher wages.
In a nutshell, negotiating a pay increase can be daunting, but in the end, it's always worth it! Research is key; knowing what you're worth and understanding the industry rate is essential. Make sure you're doing your job well. It's also crucial to maintain a positive mindset - focus on your desire for continued professional growth rather than what changes you feel are only due to you. Finally, don't be afraid to ask for more money. A good employer will understand where you're coming from and make a fair decision based on experience and merits.
