When you get your first job offer, you might think you shouldn’t negotiate. After all, you don’t want to ruffle any feathers, right? Wrong. Negotiating your salary is extremely important, especially early in your career. Your starting salary is a kind of anchor — your future raises, bonuses, and even retirement savings will be influenced by that initial amount. Prepare for the negotiation by doing some legwork using your educational and professional networks. Collect information about salaries from your educational institution and from friends and colleagues. Find people whose jobs are similar to the one you’re applying for and ask them what a reasonable salary range is. Then practice the negotiation with a friend. If all goes well, you’ll get a higher number than what you were offered. But if you don’t, that doesn’t mean it was a mistake to try. You’ve shown your employer that you are willing to be assertive and that you know how to negotiate — a valuable skill.
Adapted from "10 Myths About Negotiating Your First Salary," by Linda Babcock and Julia Bear
