Make It Work: How to Ask for the Raise You Deserve

Most supervisors would incline toward a little genuineness now over an unforeseen acquiescence later

Every week, our working environment whisperer Shane Loughnane addresses peruser submitted inquiries concerning work in 2021. Anything you need some assistance with? Ask Shane here.

One of the best-kept secrets of the first stretch of my career was that a small handful of my colleagues were discussing compensation goals with their supervisor every few months, while the rest of us were patiently waiting for a bank error in our favor. You are your most important advocate and it’s incumbent on you to kickstart the dialogue, since most companies aren’t sitting around thinking, “Where can we spend more money than we have to?”

When you do mAt the point when you do make the pitch, keep it focused on you. While valuable in assisting with deciding a reasonable ask, contrasting yourself with others is infrequently the best methodology practically speaking—it’s impossible that you know everybody’s remarkable conditions, and that is a simple method to fail to keep a grip on the discussion. All things being equal, center around the incredible things you are doing to add esteem and the quantifiable results of your work (particularly those that support key monetary measurements) by binds your expectations to the objectives and destinations of the business at every possible opportunity.

While it’s fine to acknowledge that times are hard, there will always be a reason for your employer not to show you the money (don’t recommend this approach, btw). Running a business requires constant evaluation of how best to allocate finite resources. Not only is it reasonable—and decidedly not insensitive, greedy, or insulting—to ask that your employer consider the fair value of your contributions, but most managers would prefer a little candor now over an unexpected resignation later from an employee they may never have known was feeling undervalued.

Last week I welcomed Brew perusers to join the positions of companions, partners, and innumerable exasperated teachers in endeavoring to effectively articulate my last name. Amazingly, a couple of you moved forward and nailed the right answer, which is truth be told, “Lock-nane.”