By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter explains how to respond by asking a question.
How Much Are You Looking For? Version 1
Let’s use a what-if scenario. You’re at a networking event. You’re at a job fair.
You’re not at a formal interview but you’re doing some networking and talking to a recruiter. They talk with you about your background. They’ve got a position available and they ask you . . . and it’s clear that you have a background that’s interesting to them and we’re about to be asked the question about how much you’re making, how much you’re looking for.
Let’s say they get the question out first. How much are you making? Happy to answer that. Can I ask you a question? Sure.
Could you tell me the salary range for this position? They give an answer. Any flexibility with that? Yeah, there’s probably a little bit of flexibility. Good.
And then you answer the question about compensation. Why? Because if you answer first, most of the time, they’re not going to tell you the range. Now, I also want to say that when I’m in those scenarios where someone poses that question of me, the way I respond is to say, I want you to hear something and I’m just going to pick two numbers around them.
Let’s say the job is paying between 100 and 110, just for the sake of argument. Any flexibility on that? Yeah, there’s probably a little flexibility. But I need you to hear something.
Whenever I talk about a salary range, people only hear the top number. They never hear the bottom number. And, you know, there’s a range of numbers between 100 and 110.
So, understand, it’s possible that you might be offered less than 110 or 112 or whatever the number is that you have in mind. Understand, the responsibility that you have is to convince the employer that you have that value. That’s absolutely true.
Your responsibility is to convince them that you have that value. But in terms of answering the initial question, it’s really way too early to get pinned down. But that’s what employers try to do.
So, right off the bat, what you’re trying to do is push them up just a little bit. So, in that example, I gave 100 to 110. Any flexibility on that? Could you be a little flexible if you needed to? Sure.
I Lowballed My Desired Salary! Is It OK to Fix It?
You can be a little flexible. Great! And you’ve already moved them off the pot a little bit and moved them in their thinking to knowing that they might need to come up a little higher. So that’s today’s show.
I hope you found that helpful. And if you did, here are a few ways that you can connect with me. The first one, of course, is reach out to me on LinkedIn.
My page there is LinkedIn.com forward slash IN forward slash TheBigGameHunter. Mention that you listen to the show because I love to hear from my listeners. It just puts a big smile on my face.
Next, if you’re an executive and interested in my coaching you, email me at JeffAltman at TheBigGameHunter.us. Mention in the subject line that you’re interested in coaching. I’ll reach back to you. We’ll set up a time to speak.
We’ll figure out whether this makes sense. I want to be clear. I’m not here to be your recruiter.
I no longer do search work. I’m a coach helping people find their next position and, as such, my work is not free. I’m not doing this as a charitable endeavor.
I’m here to see whether I can help you and whether your background is something where I can be of service. And if you’re not an executive, the best place to connect with me is with JobSearchCoachingHQ.com. That’s my site where I’ve curated information that I’ve created and other people have created. It’s there with their permission, of course.
And you can ask me questions. So, right now, there’s over 400 pieces of content there, plus the ability to ask me questions. So, again, JobSearchCoachingHQ.com is that site.
And, by the way, I haven’t really mentioned this on the site. In addition to doing job search coaching, I also do executive coaching and life coaching. And I’ve done so for years.
So, if you’re interested in that, message me again at my email address, JeffAltman, at TheBigGameHunter.us. Tell me about what you’re interested in and I’ll get back to you and we’ll talk about it. Hope you found this helpful. And, in the meantime, have a great day.
Take care!
Adapt!
ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
People hire Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter to provide No BS job search coaching and career advice globally because he makes job search
and succeeding in your career easier.
38 Deadly Interview Mistakes to Avoid
You will find great info and job search coaching to help with your job search at JobSearch.Community
Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/TheBigGameHunter
Schedule a discovery call to speak with me about one-on-one or group coaching during your job search at www.TheBigGameHunter.us.
The Interview Mistake Too Many Executives Make (And How To Correct It)
He is the host of “No BS Job Search Advice Radio,” the #1 podcast in iTunes for job search with over 3000 episodes over 13+ years.
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