How to Tackle the Salary Question

What did you earn in your last position?

How much would you like to earn in your next position?

What is your desired salary?

These and similar questions will stump professionals at all levels at every step in the process. And there’s no getting around it because you’re going to see it on the application. Some recruiters may ask about it during the phone screen or first interview. And it’s going to be presented in the job offer.

You want to get a full understanding of the job responsibilities before quoting a salary because if you quote a rate lower than what the job is paying, you may be overworked and underpaid. On the other hand, if you quote a rate higher than what the position is paying, you may be disqualified from the process.

So, what should you do?

How to Tackle the Salary Question

If you’re like me, you’ve pondered the following questions:

How do you get around the question on the application tracking system if it’s a required field?

How do you answer it without lying on your application?

How do you avoid answering this question until an offer is made if the recruiter brings it up?

A career counselor advised me to avoid answering this question before an offer is made. Here are other suggestions on how to tackle the salary question based on what I’ve read.

1. Research salary information on sites like salary.com to get an idea of how much professionals earn in your industry and location.
2. Match your skills and qualifications with those listed in the job posting to improve the possibility of getting paid more.
3. Write down additional skills and qualifications that would be assets in that position.
4. Have an “ideal” salary range in mind and know the absolute minimum you want to earn for that particular position.
5. Practice saying the rate you want to earn to increase your confidence so when you talk to a recruiter, it will just roll off your tongue.

What About You?

Job seekers, how do you tackle the salary question?

Recruiters, what advice would you give to job seekers on how to handle this question?

Let us know in the comment box below.

 

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