Asking for a raise is often a difficult task. We mostly feel awkward and we just don’t know how to do it. Sometimes, we take what we believe is the easy way out: we go up to our bosses with the “I-have-a-better-offer” approach, leaving them with no choice but to either raise our salary, or fire us.
The best strategy
This might seem like the perfect strategy, but it actually really is not. The only thing you obtain from this “technique” is making your boss feel like they have their back against the wall, without any alternatives on how to manage the situation.
According to Retina‘s BATMA (“best alternative to a negotiated agreement”) study, the three keys to negotiating a raise are actually: information, psychology and a position of power.
Get what you want
In order to obtain what you want, it’s important to make the person you communicate with feel like they, too, can get what they desire. Otherwise you will just come over as threatening, which nobody really likes.
Use information in your favour
It is important to realise how information works, and how to use it in your favour. Negotiating takes time, so making sure you understand all of the factors involving your raise is key to play your cards well.
You must have an extensive knowledge on the negotiator’s profile. The conversation will not be the same if the person is from the human resources department, meaning they don’t have knowledge on your actual work record; or if they are your direct superior, meaning they do know you and what you’ve accomplished.
Talking to your superior
If the latter is the case, you have to understand what personality or profession traits they find important, make sure they know your worth inside the company and how you’ve contributed to it, etc. Make yourself worthy of the raise, and have them believe it too. Show them you are.
Be confident
You won’t give the same impression if you walk up to them confidently than if you walk in eyes-to-the-ground and shaking. What you transmit plays a big part in negotiating. Emotional intelligence is vital.
This means that although you might feel like sitting in a corner crying, you have to be able to control your emotions when speaking. Make them believe you are unbreakable. A great tip is taking advantage of the emotional link you might have with the company.
A position of power
It is an oftentimes argued discussion whether or not your power position influences the negotiation. It seems to be proven that the more power you feel like you have, the more implicated you feel in the discussion. This applies not only to you, but also to your colleagues. However, feeling more involved does not necessarily mean it will be a direct benefit.
From this, we can conclude that you must make sure you know your position, and from there on you must fight for what you want. Power has a big subjective part to it, so focus on the tangible: the money you want.
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