Know Your Value; Show Your Value. Get Paid What Your Worth.

Learn The Art of Negotiation

Your Self-Awareness of Your Self-Worth

I recently sold my business to focus on a new startup that helps people find jobs, and I’ve come to realize just how important it is for job-seekers to understand how much value they can add before they start the interview process. Being able to articulate how much value you bring to the table can make all the difference in how much you’re paid for your work.

A Failure of Nerve Because You’re Too Scare To Ask.

Negotiating a salary or asking for a pay raise is one of the most challenging and underrated skills I’ve seen in my 25 years of hiring and managing employees. Surprisingly, only a handful of people ever tried to negotiate after being offered a role on my team. Many talented people have lost significant income opportunities simply because they fail to negotiate. Fear plays a huge role because it keeps people from advocating for themselves.

Like Playing Cards and Putting On Your Poker Face.

Negotiating is not just a transaction. It’s a game the employer has to play every time they hire someone new, and employers almost always have the upper hand, that is until they have a candidate who knows their worth and won’t settle for anything below what they know is fair.

Employers Are Scared Too.

Here’s a little secret. Employers across the country complain to all their other entrepreneur friends about how hard it is to find talented employees. They’re losing money every day, and that loss compounds when they hire the wrong person. This puts job-seekers in the driver’s seat, but they don’t it, and the employers will never show it.

Embracing your self-worth and convincing someone how much value you can add is a skill — and it’s a skill most people don’t have. It’s critical to be aware and realistic about your experience and skills, but also understand employers’ perspectives. Most companies have a salary range they’re willing to pay for the job they’ve posted. The online job description, which is a formality that has to be done, will most likely show a number that leaves some room to negotiate. The truth is, psychological factors heavily influence how much an employer ends up paying, especially when they meet someone they really want and are worried they might not get them.

Distinct and Deeply Connected.

The key lies in knowing how to connect your skills, experience, and previous responsibilities to what the employer needs. The goal is to paint a picture so they can see and feel that you’re an ideal candidate. Your interview is a chance to showcase this so what and how you choose to share will determine what you ultimately get.

A lack of confidence can be a roadblock and settling when you receive an offer can have a significant long term financial impact. Consider a young professional who recently graduated from college with a boat load of debt. Let’s say they land a great job at a software company and accept an offer to make $70,000, and didn’t know the employer’s salary range for this position was 70,000 to 80,000. By not negotiating, this young professional potentially missed out on an additional $10,000 per year which could amount to a loss of 30,000 to 50,000 over the next three to five years. From the employers perspective, investing that extra 10,000 is not a lot, especially if they’ve been trying to find someone for a while. They also know that if the person doesn’t work out they can fire them and only lose what they’ve paid to date, not the entire 80,000. Negotiating a higher salary is not just about making more money today, it’s about making an investment in yourself- and your future.

Asking For a Raise.

For anyone currently employed and thinking about asking for a raise, here’s some advice. Prepare to communicate what you’re going to do and how much more value you plan to add in order to justify an increase. Employers don’t want to hear about how many years you’ve worked there or about results previously produced. Why? Because they’ve already been paid for that. If you want the company to consider paying you more, then plan to justify a higher number with how much more value you can add to their success.

Bottom line, don’t be so scared, know yourself, and make sure you’re believable.