What can we do to ask for a salary increase in the best way? What is the key to not being nervous when faced with this request? Discover some psychological tips to make it easier for you.
Asking for a raise can be challenging. Even so, there are many professionals who believe they deserve greater compensation. In fact, if you really think you need and have demonstrated that your work deserves a raise, it is likely that by not requiring it you will end up feeling frustrated. So what is the best way to ask for a salary increase ?
Keys to asking for a salary increase
There are many occasions when we stop saying what we really want and think. In the case of pay rise , this is usually related to the fear of failure or the opinions of others. If this is your case, we recommend that you take into account the following tips:
Know the position evaluation: Before considering ask for a raise , it is crucial that you investigate what the market is like in your profession in order to determine the value of your work. That is, you should find out what the average salary is for a person in your field and with your experience.
Present solid arguments: You can not ask for a salary increase without demonstrating that your work is really significant within the company. In this way, it may be useful for you to prepare some evidence to present in your favor. The reason for this is that you must convince your superiors that this increase is justified. For example, you can include a list of the most important achievements you have achieved in the last year at work. Above all, a key is to present statistics that objectively quantify your work.
Assess the best time to request it: One of the most common errors when ask for a raise is to do it during the annual review. In reality, in this type of ‘evaluations’ there are many managers who have already established for months whether or not to increase the budget. Given this, it is best to ask for this raise before the job review meeting. That is, to ensure that your annual increase is taken into account in the budgets, you must plan it months in advance.
Be confident about yourself: When asking for this type of evaluation, it is important to show a lot of security and confidence in your professional worth. Therefore, you must present this request assertively and without insecurities. Think about it from the other perspective: if a seller was offering you a product, would you buy it if he or she did not assure you of its effectiveness?
Take into account the situation of the company: It won’t help you to ask for a pay rise if your company is in a bad situation despite your good work. It is vital to take this into account, since doing it at a bad economic time for the business can make others see you as selfish or unsupportive.
Avoid ultimatums and blame: It is inevitable that if we are denied this request, which is obviously important to us, we will feel bad. But, in this situation, it is better to avoid ultimatums, aggressiveness or even feeling guilty for not having sufficiently proven our worth.
Rehearse your proposal: As we have mentioned, it is completely normal for you to feel nervous about this request. Therefore, it is perhaps advisable to try to practice what you want to say and how you will say it before the day. By practicing it you will be able to feel more confident about what you are aiming for and this will help you reduce the anxiety that you may feel when faced with this event.
Make your merits count: Another common mistake when ask for a raise is using longevity as an argument to justify it. The fact that you have spent more years in your job does not increase the value of your tasks. For this reason, you should focus on your achievements.
Negotiate in the face of ‘no’: If the answer to this request is negative, perhaps you can negotiate other sections of your work that benefit you equally. For example, asking for more flexible hours or more days of teleworking may be a good option.
Find help if work problems are affecting you: It is normal that when ask for a raise you feel nervous or even insecure. Even so, sometimes this situation can highlight that you are not really being valued enough in your work and this, over time, can take its toll on you on a personal level. In these cases, we recommend that you go to a professional psychologist.
You must keep in mind that we spend almost a third of our adult life at work, which implies that it is a very important part of our lives. In this way, if you think that you do not feel comfortable in the professional field, you should try to work to solve it before it affects your relationships and intimacy. If your work situation causes you discomfort or anxiety, it is best to talk to a psychology professional to see if there is a situation of work mobbing or if a change is necessary.
