9 Huge Mistakes Youre Making When Negotiating Salary

9 Huge Mistakes Youre Making When Negotiating SalaryYou might think landing a job is most of the battle. But dont forget, over the course of negotiationsand indeed your whole careerthere are a few mistakes you can make that will stick you with a low salary, and sometimes for a lot longer than you might expect. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) So when youre negotiating a new offer, remember leid to fall victim to any of the following mistakes, and make aya you set yourself up to earn as much as you are worth1. Not NegotiatingPerhaps the worst negotiation mistake you can make is not to negotiate at all. Dont just accept whatever offer you receive. Youll be settling for lesseven than they would expect to end up paying you. This can have immediate and long-term impact on your finances. Figure out your work before you get an offer. Then negotiate. Its standard practice and will be expected of you, no matter whether or not you hate the process. 2. Not Providing a RangeTake your total salary, positiv perks, from three years ago, versus your total salary today, plus perks, and you have a range Then visit a site like Glassdoor or Payscale to figure out what other professionals in your desired position are making. If you have the experience and skill set to justify being compensated at their level, then you can extend your range a little higher than your current compensation. But be prepared to show why you deserve this.3. Winging ItYou will not be in a strong position to negotiate salary if youve half-assed your resume and the vorstellungsgesprch process. Make sure theres a solid paper trail documenting your strengths and talents, showing how competitive a candidate you are, and also make sure youve made a solid and impressive first impression. This will net you a higher first offer, and also give you more leeway to negotiate even higher. Remember the negotiation process is more about your value being rewarded than it is abou t your need or greed.4. Negotiating Too SoonThe moment you get the offer is not the time to counter. Get all the details about your compensationincluding non-salary benefits, PTO, etc. Then sit on it for a while. Thank them, politely ask for a day or two to review the details, and then get back to them with a respectful, reasonable counter.5. Revealing Your Bottom LineDont give hirers the upper hand by letting them know the number you would take to accept the job and end negotiations. They may very well offer you just thatand then where would you be? It would be impossible for you to negotiate up from there.6. Not Doing Your HomeworkYou cant make claims about industry standards or your value in the market if you havent done thorough research. Dont get caught out saying something that wont smell right to professionals in your industry. In other words dont fake anything. Be prepared to back all things up with hard factincluding your own skill and experience.7. Flubbing the CounterYou get to the negotiation phaseeither over email, phone, or in personand you thank them for their generous offer, then make your counter, ending with a number or range that would be more acceptable to you. STOP THERE. Dont keep blabbing on. Leave the ball in their court, then take it from there depending on what you get for a response. Remember not to ask for wildly too muchthat can get you laughed right out of the running. And dont forget you can also negotiate non-salaried perks. Dont leave the table until you feel really excited and honored to accept the jobor so certain that you couldnt make it work that you have to decline (knowing, of course, that youve made a good faith effort to get what you deserve).8. Taking Things PersonallyNegotiations are business. Not personal. Dont get offended if they dont go exactly as you wanted. Or if you get push-back on your requests. Remember, this is business. You need to behave that way. Keep it professional and keep your ego and your bruised fe elings out of the room.9. Not Getting Your Final Offer in WritingYou get the offer you wanted. Great But its not real, or binding in any way, unless you get it in writing. If an employer balks at your request to have this formalized, then that might be a big red flag that you should try your luck at some other, better-behaved company.And remember, developing a strategy to answering the desired salary question is a big step towards determining how much money you will be paid, so make sure to go over answering that question in detail, in addition to everything mentioned in this article.