8 Rules for a Compensation Negotiation
By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
These are eight rules for negotiating compensation and salary you must follow.
The Easiest Way to Negotiate a Higher Salary for Yourself
Hi, I’m Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter. I’m called The Big Game Hunter because when I worked in recruiting, I’d hunt down leaders and staff for organizations and did it for a long, long time. Now I coach people. I provide no BS career advice, which can relate to job search, hiring more effectively, 
managing better leading better, career transitions, and workplace related issues.
I’m going to talk with you today about eight rules for going into a compensation, negotiation. I say, compensation rather than salary because you don’t have to be wed to just salary. You can try to negotiate other benefits for yourself that are profitable for you.
So, the first thing is, as you’re doing this negotiation, don’t just interrupt or stop everything. Keep working for alternatives. After all, this may wind up being 90% of what you want. But the next place gives you 100%. Which one do you take? I think you know the answer. So always keep working for alternatives.
Number two is having information about, not just simply your value, but what they value. What was it about you that made you the person that they chose. Thus, at the time that they extend the offer, the simplest thing to do is to ask, ‘Out of curiosity, why did you choose me? What was it in my background versus others, that made me the preferable choice? And that gives you a sense of what caused them to choose you.
Number three is attitude. Stay positive, no one likes the angry person. No one likes the grumpy person. Always have a positive attitude in your conversations.
Number four, and this is going to be hard for a lot of you. Don’t get up from the negotiating table, because that makes you the decision maker because you’re quitting the negotiation. Always keep pushing. Always keep driving toward getting what you want.
Number five, be hard to get but winnable. It’s kind of like in dating, where one person or the other is a little hard to get but they are giving cues that they can be won over.
How Can They Catch You Bluffing?
Number six is the negotiation ends when they say ‘this is it. You’ve got to make a decision, or we’re going to pull the offer.’ You know, that’s the point where they’ve had enough and you’ve got choices to make.
Also, this is number seven, be motivated by more than just money. If it’s just about the money, you’re gonna have to live in an environment where you’re doing work that you don’t really care for. So always make sure that there’s a job there that you really like, and excites you. And it’s going to make it interesting for you to go to work in the morning. If that isn’t the case, unless you’re desperate for a job, you’ve been out of work for a while, your financials have collapsed, etc, you know, be motivated by money, of course, but by the work too. And keep driving to make sure that the work meets your needs.
Lastly, make sure you get everything that’s been agreed to in writing. If it’s not in the offer letter, it doesn’t exist. For example, if they promise you an extra week’s vacation, you know, ‘I can give it to you., but I can’t put in the offer letter.’ That basically tells you that if your manager leaves, you don’t have that extra week’s vacation because the next person isn’t going to know about that. As a result, you want to put yourself in a position where everything is in writing.
I believe you can get more out of a negotiation. And the key points here are knowing your value going into the negotiation., making sure that you don’t get up when you get frustrated. You don’t get up from the negotiating table. You hang in there and keep pushing for what you want. And always make sure everything’s in writing.
I hope you found this helpful. I’m Jeff Altman. Visit my website, TheBigGameHunter.us. There’s a ton in the blog to help you. In addition, you can schedule time for a free discovery call or a coaching session, find out about my courses, books and guides . . . There’s a lot there that will help you.
Also, connect with me on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/TheBigGameHunter Doing that, your network is going to get a lot bigger because my network tends to be a lot bigger than most people’s.
Have a terrific day and be great
The Top 10 Salary Negotiation Mistakes
ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter is a coach who worked as a recruiter for what seems like one hundred years. He is hired to provide No BS Career Advice globally. That can involve job search, hiring staff, management, leadership, career transition and advice about resolving workplace issues. Schedule a discovery call at my website, www.TheBigGameHunter.us
He is the host of “No BS Job Search Advice Radio,” the #1 podcast in iTunes for job search with over 2400 episodes.
I do a livestream on LinkedIn, and YouTube (on the JobSearchTV.com account) Tuesdays and Fridays at 1 PM Eastern. You can send your questions about job search, hiring better, management, leadership or to get advice about a workplace issue to me via messaging on LinkedIn or in chat during the approximately 30-minute show.
Website: www.TheBigGameHunter.us
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