Worried About Salary Negotiation? Here's How to Do It Right
New study shows how to approach salary negotiation
Salary negotiation can make even the most cool-headed climber sweat, but a new study shows there might be a secret to success: Don’t be too specific but also be super specific.
Sound nonsensical? That’s because it’s counter-intuitive as hell.
Being precise about your number helps everyone involved in a negotiation understand the underlying expectations. But, according to researchers at Cornell, UC Berkley, and eBay’s research lab, you should still stick with a nice round number. Round numbers indicate that you are willing to be flexible, which makes you seem less aggressive and paves the way for better relations with your boss.
The math rule here is pretty simple: Determine your target number and round up. If you’re at the beginning of your career, you can work in units of $5,000. If you’re a little further along, you work in units of $10,000. If you’re crushing it, you can work in units of $50,000. Just, whatever you do, don’t tell someone you want to make $72,385. You’ll sound greedy (or like you owe someone dangerous money).
