On negotiations - Ask for three things
Pick up to three things that are important to you. Here is a primer on how.
Note: This article is written for an audience interested in learning how to better negotiate at work. Comic Credit: Dilbert By Scott Adams
đ Hello! This week, we explore the not so subtle art of negotiating by focusing on how to figure out what to ask for. One winter, I was discussing a short lived stint at a company with a mentor. I had jumped into accepting the offer without thinking through what was important for me. Not asking what you want often makes these partnerships short lived because you are not happy. She wisely pointed out that I had started out on the wrong foot by not taking time to negotiate to get what I wanted before accepting the role.Â
âYeah, I should have negotiatedâ I sighed. Followed by, âBut I didnât know what to ask for. The offer seemed good! Also it was a unique role, how would I know what compensation should really look like.âÂ
âWell you donât have to always ask for money, in fact there should be more than just money you ask for. Always ask for 3 things, and let at least 1-2 asks be more than just moneyâ she pointed out. Â
This is one of the most valuable pieces of advice I have received. Negotiating can be an uncomfortable process and doing so virtually can be even harder. However, there are some key things you can focus on to figure out what these 1-3 asks should be.
Here is a primer on how.
First, the basics - What is negotiation?
Fascinatingly, Negotiation is derived from the Latin word ânegotiatâ which means to get âdone in the course of business.â It is one of the most natural things to do when working with something on a shared objective.
Common assumptions:
Successful negotiation is about getting what you want
Successful negotiations leave both parties satisfied with the outcome. You are (usually) building a long term relationship with the other party and so it is important that both parties leave the discussions feeling satisfied.
I should negotiate a job offer
If something is truly important to you and missing from the offer, by all means negotiate. But donât negotiate just for the sake of it. Doing so can rub people the wrong way, and can negatively influence your ability to negotiate with the party later in your career.Â
To negotiate a job offer, I must ask for better compensation
Better compensation might be one of things that matter to you. If an offer is truly great, consider other things that are important to you and ask for them. For example, remote work, flexibility, or a different start date for joining the company.
If I negotiate, I might come across as difficult
Emotion plays a significant role in successful negotiations so you want to be careful of your tone (letâs explore how in another piece?). However, negotiating in itself is expected by most parties. Come prepared and be genuinely curious about what is important to the other person.
Ask for up to three things:
Why? Our brains process upto three things at a time. Giving the other party three asks also gives them flexibility to consider the asks and get back with a better counter offer.Â
These three âasksâ do not have to be around money or compensation. Consider diversifying your requests. After all, money is only one component of career satisfaction. Would you rather make X amount of money and be excited about your work or make 10% more and hate your job? Identify what is important to you, and what tradeoffs you are willing to make. There is no one size fits all when it comes to what you should be asking for.Â
Types of asks:
Money - This one is obvious. Before the company extends an offer, do your research to try to find salary benchmarks. Research market salaries for positions using Salary Databases such as Glassdoor, H1B Visa Salary Database. Go in with a range you would feel comfortable with and is backed by data.
Titles - Depending on the company, titles matter. In a larger organization, a title can usually help quickly gain influence within the company. Identify a title that is important to you and ask for the title now or a path where the company/manager considers this again a few months down the road after demonstrating success in the role.Â
Development - Many companies will have learning and development budgets, but this is not always clear. Consider asking for career development opportunities like connecting to a coach, or budget for investing in other things that will help with your professional development.
Benefits - Value of benefits really vary based on where you are in your personal and professional life. Examples of things you can ask about include a better relocation package, parental leave, or child care.
Flexibility - Early on in my career as a people manager, I assumed that everyone wanted to get to the next level on the career ladder. I entered a conversation with a report about career development and was surprised to learn that what was most important to them was actually flexibility with working hours and not moving up the ladder. Depending on your situation, flexibility in terms of working hours or where you work from might be valuable. Â
How to apply this to work:
Situation A - Negotiating Job Offer
Remember that short stint I mentioned earlier? After that experience and advice, here is how I went about applying it to my next offer (slightly modified for privacy).
Step Zero: Research - Researched even before you started a job search to understand potential compensation and benefits. Used online resources mentioned above, or forums to get estimated ranges.
Step One: Identify - Introspected to figure out what was really important to me. Questions I used to identify these three things:Â Â
How would I rank what is important to be at this stage in my career? The options were: Title, Compensation, Benefits, Developments and Flexibility.
What were my non-negotiables? For example, I really cared about which team I would work on and hence who my manager would be
What was I willing to trade off? For example, I was willing to take a slight lower compensation if I could extend my start date
Step Two:Â Practice - Practiced negotiation conversations with a friend. The more you practice, the easier it gets.
Step Three: Ask - Shared what was important to me upfront to the recruiter who appreciated knowing what I wanted. They later mentioned it was very helpful to hear what was important to me upfront so they could put together a package that worked. It also speeded up the process.Â
Key Takeaways:
Negotiating is a natural process during the course of business
Ask for up to three things that are important to you
Consider having 1-2 things be more than just money
Know what your non-negotiables are
đ Happy holidays and new year. See you in the first week of January.Â
Stay safe,
Zainab
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