How I Got a 84% Raise 8 Months Into My Job

[SatvikBeri]

I initially wrote this as a response to a survey by Ramit Sethi of How to Be Rich - Get Simple Tips On Personal Finance , but figured it might be useful to some members of the forum:


6 months into my job I knew I was doing a phenomenal job and felt I was getting underpaid, so I wanted to negotiate a raise. I was 22 and getting paid $50,000, and when I looked it up I found out that the average for my job in my zip code was $65,000. At first I was going to ask for that, but I realized that most of my colleagues were level 12 analysts and I was level 10, but I was contributing significantly more than most of them. If I got the double promotion, that would bring my salary to $92,000-an 84% increase!

So I basically followed your script for negotiating a raise verbatim. I found out when the budgets were set and asked my boss for a meeting about compensation BEFORE the budget would be finalized. I found out that the major decision makers were my boss and his boss and made sure to impress them both (my boss only really cared about what I accomplished, but I knew his boss cared a lot about how many hours a day people worked and having them work in the office-so I buckled down and put in the extra hours to win his approval too). I asked the people I worked with regularly to put in a good word for me, and I carefully tailored two documents indicating the value I had contributed and the value I would contribute going forward (one for the meeting with my boss, and one that he could pass on to his boss so that he wouldn’t have to do the work of making a case for me).

During the meeting I presented my case, and my boss agreed immediately-no resistance whatsoever! I almost felt like I should have asked for more. If I hadn’t negotiated I would probably have gotten a 15-20% raise at the end of the year, so your tactics were responsible for earning me at least $30,000/year.

I had initially felt like I was underpaid, but nervous about asking for more. Now I feel that I’m being more fairly compensated, and I feel much more in control of my financial future, and capable of negotiating more raises in the future.

[Acting Like Godot]

I also got an 82% increase in 2006.

At that time, I had just heard of the Law of Attraction. I started experimenting with it.

Hey, presto! It worked. If you look at my old posts in late 2006 / early 2007 in this forum, you'll probably find that I'd written about it before.

Since then I have continued to use the LOA regularly.

[Cochonette]

So you didn't take the AI job? What happened with that? I thought you said the old one was boring you?

[SatvikBeri]

Originally Posted by Acting Like Godot

I also got an 82% increase in 2006.

At that time, I had just heard of the Law of Attraction. I started experimenting with it.

Hey, presto! It worked. If you look at my old posts in late 2006 / early 2007 in this forum, you'll probably find that I'd written about it before.

Since then I have continued to use the LOA regularly.

I remember that story well! In 2010 I set an intention to earn $100k in 2012, and it looks like I'm succeeding.

Originally Posted by Cochonette

So you didn't take the AI job? What happened with that? I thought you said the old one was boring you?

I am-I used the raise at the Bank job, to negotiate a better offer at that job . But I figured that this story was all that would be necessary/useful for most people.

[Cochonette]

Originally Posted by SatvikBeri

I remember that story well! In 2010 I set an intention to earn $100k in 2012, and it looks like I'm succeeding.



I am-I used the raise at the Bank job, to negotiate a better offer at that job . But I figured that this story was all that would be necessary/useful for most people.

lol, but isn't that weird for them to give you a raise like a week before you leave? :P How much at the new job? =D

[SatvikBeri]

Originally Posted by Cochonette

lol, but isn't that weird for them to give you a raise like a week before you leave? :P How much at the new job? =D

Well when the promotion was approved they didn't know I was leaving :P.

It's the same at the new job, but given that it's in the tech industry (and not the financial industry) that's a very good deal. It's about 30% more than the average person with my experience in the field, and 50% more than the average person my age in the field.

[Clint Cora]

Originally Posted by SatvikBeri

Well when the promotion was approved they didn't know I was leaving :P.

It's the same at the new job, but given that it's in the tech industry (and not the financial industry) that's a very good deal. It's about 30% more than the average person with my experience in the field, and 50% more than the average person my age in the field.

Well done!

[Cochonette]

Originally Posted by SatvikBeri

Well when the promotion was approved they didn't know I was leaving :P.

It's the same at the new job, but given that it's in the tech industry (and not the financial industry) that's a very good deal. It's about 30% more than the average person with my experience in the field, and 50% more than the average person my age in the field.

But I thought you were already making that amount at the new job.

Today I was inspired by your idea of asking for a raise right before you leave, lol. So I asked one of my managers for a raise, and she said she's going to sneak a small raise in for me, because she knows the owner is just gonna argue about it. At least I can say I finally got a raise.

[SatvikBeri]

Originally Posted by Cochonette

But I thought you were already making that amount at the new job.

Today I was inspired by your idea of asking for a raise right before you leave, lol. So I asked one of my managers for a raise, and she said she's going to sneak a small raise in for me, because she knows the owner is just gonna argue about it. At least I can say I finally got a raise.

Timeline:
-Satvik negotiates raise at old job
-Satvik interviews for new job, and uses raise at old job to negotiate higher pay at new job
-Satvik leaves old job (two weeks ago) and starts new job tomorrow!

[lifetimelearner]

Originally Posted by SatvikBeri

Timeline:
-Satvik negotiates raise at old job
-Satvik interviews for new job, and uses raise at old job to negotiate higher pay at new job
-Satvik leaves old job (two weeks ago) and starts new job tomorrow!

good for you !

[aimon]

Originally Posted by SatvikBeri

I initially wrote this as a response to a survey by Ramit Sethi of How to Be Rich - Get Simple Tips On Personal Finance , but figured it might be useful to some members of the forum:


6 months into my job I knew I was doing a phenomenal job and felt I was getting underpaid, so I wanted to negotiate a raise. I was 22 and getting paid $50,000, and when I looked it up I found out that the average for my job in my zip code was $65,000. At first I was going to ask for that, but I realized that most of my colleagues were level 12 analysts and I was level 10, but I was contributing significantly more than most of them. If I got the double promotion, that would bring my salary to $92,000-an 84% increase!

So I basically followed your script for negotiating a raise verbatim. I found out when the budgets were set and asked my boss for a meeting about compensation BEFORE the budget would be finalized. I found out that the major decision makers were my boss and his boss and made sure to impress them both (my boss only really cared about what I accomplished, but I knew his boss cared a lot about how many hours a day people worked and having them work in the office-so I buckled down and put in the extra hours to win his approval too). I asked the people I worked with regularly to put in a good word for me, and I carefully tailored two documents indicating the value I had contributed and the value I would contribute going forward (one for the meeting with my boss, and one that he could pass on to his boss so that he wouldn’t have to do the work of making a case for me).

During the meeting I presented my case, and my boss agreed immediately-no resistance whatsoever! I almost felt like I should have asked for more. If I hadn’t negotiated I would probably have gotten a 15-20% raise at the end of the year, so your tactics were responsible for earning me at least $30,000/year.

I had initially felt like I was underpaid, but nervous about asking for more. Now I feel that I’m being more fairly compensated, and I feel much more in control of my financial future, and capable of negotiating more raises in the future.

Sounds great mate. Can you please link to the original article you are referring to?

[ultimate]

Thats awesome