@chudoc Thanks, it was definitely a hard lesson to learn. I was still young enough to be afraid to stand up for myself and I had no idea how to fully negotiate a compensation package, so I didn’t know how to try to leverage it into more non-salary alternatives (I really do think they should teach that in your last year of college, along with personal finance). Over the next several years, I learned a lot. It was a battle to get my salary back up to a level on par with my peers, and it involved getting a friend who had previously been at the company I was interviewing with to tell me what she (and other senior designers) made, and then standing firm until I got it. I had to go into the negotiation prepared to walk away from the offer if they didn’t meet my minimum requirements. It took 3 days of essentially playing chicken for a salary I KNEW they could offer, they just wanted to try to get out of it if they could. Knowing that made it easier to stand firm, but it was still nerve racking. When they came back to me with the number I wanted, they acted like it was a big favor because it was ‘out of the normal range for that position’ (it wasn’t even the top end).
@twirlgirl Asking for the employee handbook is a great idea, thanks for sharing that.
I was thinking about this today and a thought crossed my mind:
Imagine you own a grocery store and a customer comes in wanting to buy a loaf of bread. The bread costs $5. The customer comes up to you and says, “I’d like to buy this bread but I can’t spend $5”. Would you give them a deal? Most likely you’d say, “Sorry but the price is $5”. If that customer then responds “But I only have $3 and I think the bread is only worth $3” or “Because of the economic climate, I can only afford $3” would you give them the bread for less than the price on the package? Again, most likely no but you could suggest to them another store where they might be able to buy bread for $3. If you did sell the bread for $3, that customer will keep coming back wanting bread for $3. Not only that, but they will tell their friends and family about the store that will lower their prices if you ask. The never ending downward spiral of bad customers…
Many of us struggle with understanding the value of our services. Not only can it be difficult for us as designers to set a price for these services, but it’s even more difficult for the people buying these services. It’s a lot easier if you were selling a physical product. I think it’s helpful to try to visualize what you provide for a client/customer/employer as a physical item. A great video to watch is this: When Client Says “Your Price Is Too High”– How To Respond Role Play
Even though it’s based on video work, it’s a great back and forth that can help with speaking to potential clients/employers!
Try to negotiate e shorter work week in exchange for the hourly rate reduction. I’m sure the company would consider it a better alternative than losing you and having to start a new contract worker and breaking them in.
Good point! Plus it’s cheaper for companies to give an extra day off or an extra week of vacation if they can’t increase the salary. Unfortunately since I’m a contract worker these benefits aren’t something I can negotiate since I don’t have paid time off. I think that’s your point here. But yes, I could say I won’t work Mondays, knowing I’ll have that day off without being bothered by a client. A real day off!
