Job Placement - Don't Say No Too Soon

Too often, people lose the ability to negotiate salary because they mishandle the job offer or its discussion. This brings me to rule #4:

Many job seekers mishandle discussions of pay early in the interview process. They may not even realize that their response eliminated them from further consideration. That is why you should avoid discussion of pay if at all possible until a firm job offer is being made. Later in this chapter, I'll cover what to do when a job offer is being made. But, for now, it is important that you understand that discussion of pay before a job offer is made is a trap that can easily result in your being eliminated from being considered.

But what can you do if an employer insists on your stating your pay requirements early in the interview? Going back to the original example, you had decided in advance that you wanted to earn about $25,000 a year.

Using the bracketing technique correctly, you say you would accept offers in the range from the mid- to upper twenties. In response, the interviewer then tells you that the organization wants to pay about $23,000. Because that is below what you had hoped for, you display some subtle signs of disappointment.

The interviewer just might notice that reaction and decide to keep looking for someone who would be delighted with the $25,000 the organization wants to pay. If you had just had a bit more patience, you might have made a good fit. Perhaps that lost job would have turned out to be just the sort you had been looking for-a very nice job in all respects except the salary.

Had you handled things differently and not acted disappointed, you might have continued a pleasant chat, and the interviewer would have gotten to know you as the wonderful person you are. She or he just might have been able to come up with a few thousand more, having discovered you were worth it.

To avoid losing the job before the interview is over, you might consider countering a lower-than-hoped-for offer by saying something like this: "That is somewhat lower than I had hoped, but this position does sound very interesting. If I were to consider this offer, what sorts of things could I do to quickly become more valuable to this organization?"

Or you might say that you would be happy to get more specific about salary later, after you have both gotten to know each other better. I hope you now see why you should not negotiate your pay too early in an interview. Only later, when employers want you, are wages an appropriate topic. Remember that a discussion of salary is not necessarily a job offer. More often, it is an attempt to screen you out of consideration.