The question always comes up during the process of looking for a job: What are your salary expectations? Obviously, the correct answer is a million billion jillion dollars. But don’t actually say that out loud.
So what should you say?
After all, while you may not want to appear greedy, you also don’t want to lowball what you ask for and wind up with less of a paycheck than you could have received.
Unfortunately, there is no easy answer when it comes to answering the question, “How much salary should I ask for?” But when an employer does ultimately ask how much money you would like, we have some tips on how you might want to frame your reply.
First, Figure Out How Much Money You Need
Deb Harrison is a growth and change consultant based out of Montgomery, New York, who has worked with companies in recruiting and with individuals searching for jobs. She recommends that anyone looking for a job must first do their own monthly budgeting.
It may seem like an obvious thing to do, but if you’re kind of new to the job searching scene, it can be easy to forget that key component: Figure out how much you need to earn.
You don’t want to blunder into a job, accepting a salary that sounds pretty good, but it actually won’t pay for all of your bills. Looking at your budget will also help, Harrison says, in assessing beyond what a company is offering, such as the health care package.
“Individuals should be sure to look at the entire package. Perhaps a company is paying a lower salary than expected, for example, but is paying 100% of the medical benefits, which may not be otherwise common, or has a high pay into a 401(k) or large bonuses. These should be considered when assessing compensation, not just the base salary.”
[Read: How to Make a Budget — and Stick to It.]
Research What This Type of Job Pays
So once you know what you need or realistically want for a salary, you should start researching what this type of position pays, Harrison says.
She says that some websites that often have good information on the average salary for specific careers include Payscale, Indeed, Glassdoor, Salary.com and perhaps LinkedIn.
“I recommend using multiple of these and searching using common variations on the job title. I then suggest an average of all of those numbers,” Harrison says.
She adds that you need to consider where the job is located, since positions often pay more or less depending on the cost of living in the area, and the number of years of experience you have as well. Entry-level jobs will obviously pay far less than high-level jobs meant for somebody with experience.
Have Two Numbers in Mind When You Interview
Once you have a salary range figured out, you should never walk into any salary conversation without having two numbers in mind, says Tim Toterhi, a human resources officer and career coach based out of Raleigh, North Carolina.
Those numbers, Toterhi says, is your desired compensation and “your walk-away figure,” which would be the lowest number that you will accept.
“Writing these bookend figures down will tether you to logic during an emotional moment,” Toterhi says.
He has a good point. If you want a particular job, you may be tempted to say yes, even if the pay is paltry. And an anemic paycheck may ultimately be OK with you, if you really would love this position, but that circles back to knowing how much money you absolutely need to have to be able to pay your bills and put money away for an emergency fund and retirement and hopefully still have some left over for the fun stuff, like going out to dinner with friends and perhaps taking a vacation.
You may need this job, but you also need a job that pays a reasonable salary.
What to Say if You Don’t Know What to Say
Sometimes you may have the question “What are your salary expectations?” sprung on you before you’ve done any research or thought that deeply about it. If that happens to you, Jeff Altman has a ready answer. Altman is a New York City-based career, leadership and executive coach who has a firm called The Big Game Hunter.
Just be honest, Altman says. Tell them you aren’t really sure, which is especially reasonable if, for instance, you were recruited and were quickly thrown into the interview machine.
Altman says that you also could say, if the following is accurate, something like: “I haven’t met my future manager or the team, heard what the job is all about, and I don’t have a sense of timelines and expectations. Could I answer that after I speak with the manager or team?”
If you’re pressed to give a number, Altman says that you should, but you should also say something like: “I can give you a number, but I want you to understand that it may change higher or lower after I learn more.”
What to Say if You Do Know What to Say
Of course, you may have done your research, and you may know exactly what type of salary you want. In that case, you ask for as much as you think you’re likely to get.
But if you haven’t been given a salary range by the employer, you should find out and ask, says Toterhi. “You never want to be the first to propose a number,” he says.
What to Say When Your Possible Future Employer Makes an Offer
You should probably counter with your own offer, according to Toterhi.
“The first offer is rarely the best, so unless dazzled, ask for more,” Toterhi says. “Candidates sometimes neglect to ask for fear that the request will jeopardize the negotiation. Remember both parties want to close the deal so think of a ‘no’ as a ‘let’s continue the discussion.'”
What to Say if the Offer Isn’t What You Want
Well, maybe no, of course. But Toterhi suggests that you think about total compensation and not just the salary.
“The company may not be able to offer more in base salary, but might have flexibility in bonus, vacation or ancillary benefits that are meaningful to you,” he says.
But be careful when it comes to negotiating around employee bonus pools, Toterhi cautions.
Going for a smaller salary in exchange for a bigger bonus may be smart, he says. “But be sure you understand how the pool is funded and distributed, and the history of payout. Having a 20% bonus sounds great until you realize that, for the last five years, the company has averaged only 10% of the target payout.”
How to Negotiate a Better Salary
It isn’t easy, but the more data you have, the easier negotiations will be. That’s why researching from the get-go how much this position should pay is important. It not only gives you intel so that you can request the type of salary that matches the position, having that salary documentation allows you to be more informed if you end up negotiating.
“In my mind, the purpose of negotiating is always to make sure you’re paid fairly and paid market for your role. It shouldn’t be to get more only because you want more or have an expensive lifestyle and therefore need more,” says Amy Spurling, the founder and CEO of Compt, a human resources software for employers.
She adds: “There are ways to negotiate without feeling confrontational or asking directly for more without justification.”
So how do you do that? Spurling says that if you if you know that the company’s compensation range is (and you really should know once you’re in the negotiating stage), you should be able to justify what you want, based on your experience. The main thing, she says, is that you “aim for being paid fairly.”
Now, sometimes salaries are set in stone, and there really is no negotiating. In that case, Spurling says that you should and can negotiate your benefits such as paid time off, parental leave, health insurance contributions and commuter benefits.
“Companies may have no flexibility on salary, which means no pay gaps hopefully, which is a good thing, but will be using these other tools to further compensate people,” Spurling says.
And you deserve to be well-compensated and get as much as you reasonably can. But, alas, no matter how skilled you are at negotiating, you probably won’t get paid a million billion jillion dollars.
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How to Determine What Salary to Ask For originally appeared on usnews.com
