Five Strategies to Make a Raise

Five magic words: ‘Is there any wiggle room?’

About six in 10 workers are heading into the holiday season with bigger paychecks than last year, according to a recent survey by MagnifyMoney — and about half of those who received a raise said it was accompanied by a promotion. 

That’s all well and good, but categorizing the results by gender yielded some disconcerting figures: More men reported pay increases than women (64 percent vs. 52 percent), and men were also more likely than women to receive a promotion alongside their raise (54 percent vs. 37 percent). 

Data from the United States Census Bureau backs that up: The real median earnings of all U.S. workers increased 3.4 percent between 2017 and 2018, but when you break down those median earnings by gender, men made almost $10,000 more than women. 

This barrage of negative numbers doesn’t do much to help boost women’s confidence in the raise department: About two in 10 women doubted they’d receive a raise in the next year, according to MagnifyMoney’s survey — more than twice the amount of men who said the same. And believing you deserve a raise is oftentimes the first step towards getting one. 

To that end, here are five key tips for the next time you ask for a salary boost (even if it’s your first time).

To start, Lewis C. Lin, author of 71 Brilliant Salary Negotiation Samples, has five magic words that can mean real progress in any negotiation: “Is there any wiggle room?” 

Pay attention to timing.

Read the room. When you’re deciding when to set up your raise conversation, avoid days (and times of day) when your manager is often stressed.

Ask when you’ve recently gotten a significant piece of praise or completed a notable task; otherwise, align your ask with your company’s performance review cycle.

Check sites like Glassdoor and PayScale to make sure you’re asking for a raise that makes sense based on your title, industry and location.

And to avoid your manager feeling blindsided by the request, ask them a few days in advance about setting up a time to discuss your “compensation and career trajectory,” says Stefanie O’Connell, author of The Broke and Beautiful Life. 

Read more: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/341718