Its women’s money week! Today’s topic is increasing income. If you would like to read all of the great posts by women money bloggers on this topic you can find the full list here.
It’s no secret that women still make less money than men. Although there are a lot of factors that seem to play into this, negotiating raises is one of the biggest. There are tons of potential ways to increase your income or even earn extra money on the side, but one of the quickest ways to boost your pay is to simply ask for a raise.
By implementing a few key strategic moves you can confidently negotiate your way to a higher salary.
Treat Your Employer like a Client
A new perspective may be the only thing you are lacking when it comes to excelling at your day job. Though there are a couple of key factors you need to look at before making this paradigm shift.
1.) Your boss gives you money. In exchange for that money you are expected to complete your work load. Obvious, I know. Yet over time people get bored or even resentful of their jobs, counting down the minutes until they get to leave. (Yes, I know this feeling.)
2.) If you are counting down the minutes until you get to hit the proverbial time clock then you shouldn’t expect a raise.
Now that I have stated the obvious it’s time to get down to the real trick. If you treat your employer like they are a client and you are the business then your work will be amazing.
Why is this? You are representing yourself, your own brand, and your own company. Instead of feeling like a slave shackled to a desk, you have a new perspective.
Find Your Areas of Impact
Areas of impact are those dynamic skills that you have that enable you to do certain tasks exceptionally well. If you are oblivious to what jobs you do that most benefit your company, I would suggest you meet with your boss and discuss these.
Once you have an idea of the areas in which you really excel, narrow them down to three. Pick the three jobs that benefit your position the most and make you feel accomplished.
Every morning when you go into work make a list of all of the things you need to do for the day. Out of this list find all of the jobs that fall into your three areas of impact. Now list these according to urgency and importance.
Now that you have your areas of impact list knock them out of the ball park. Go full force until you cross every single one out of the list. Save non important or non-urgent tasks for last. If at the end of the day you don’t have time to complete these, ask your boss if there is anyone you can delegate these jobs to so that you can focus on more beneficial roles.
Negotiate a Raise
Since you have already sat down with your boss and discussed what you do that most benefits the company, it’s now time to talk results. If you are focusing on your areas of impact with extreme intensity then you should be producing extreme results. Now is the time to negotiate.
Have another meeting with your boss and explain the results you have been getting. Talk with him/her and see if you made X amount of sales or brought in new business that you could have a raise. (It’s also good to have a number in mind.)
Instead of demanding that you be paid more for your efforts, show him/her that you are willing to produce results before he gives you the raise. This will give you a goal to work on, therefore increasing your determination.
When you give yourself a goal to hit, and focus on the areas that produce the most results you will feel fulfilled at the end of the work day. Your self-confidence will soar and you will produce phenomenal results. You will have earned the recognition you deserve with work and hopefully a nice raise to go along with it.
