Discussing salary in a job interview is something that most people dread. It’s also a topic of much debate.  Today I will put the questions that I most frequently get in a Q & A format:

What do I say when they ask me what salary I’m looking for?

Most people agree that when possible, you should not be the first person to give a number.  But, when you’re directly asked what you’re looking for, what do you say?   It depends on where you are in the process. If they ask you at the start of the interview, it’s very reasonable to say: “I’d like to hear more about the position before I give a number.”  Or you could turn the question around by saying, “Without knowing much about the position, it’s hard to say. What is the budget for this role?”

If this is the 3^rd round of interviews + they ask you, then, again, turn it around  by saying: “Before I give you a number, could you tell me what range this role is paying?”

My present salary is much lower than it should be, so when they ask me what I’m making now, how do I handle that?

You could say something like this:  “I’m underpaid at my present job. Based on the research that I’ve done in the industry, my salary should be 60k”  Then they might ask why you’re underpaid and  just keep it simple with something like, “They’ve not been able to give anyone raises for the past year due to budget constraints, although I’ve always had good reviews.” Don’t talk about how lame the company is. Stay positive.

Do I have to write down my salary history?

In every place that I’ve worked, we always had an application that asked for salary history.  But when I research this question online, all advice says not to give your salary history. You don’t have to. In my experience, most people completed the salary history, but if they didn’t, that was fine.  I just asked them about it.  Sometimes, they would say that their past jobs didn’t pay well and they’d rather talk about what they’d like to make. No problem.  Or they’d get all nervous and shifty eyed and blurt something out like “I don’t have to tell you that.” That was just uncomfortable all around and generally didn’t work to their advantage.

The main thing is to give the discussion some thought ahead of time, speak with confidence and assume that they want to pay you what you’re worth. They might not want to, but assume it so that you’re giving off the right energy. I’ve interviewed some people who clearly thought I was trying to screw them and it made the conversation more awkward than it had to be.

There’s a difference between the body language of someone who is uncomfortable with discussing salary and someone who thinks you’re out to get them.  Be the first person if you can’t be confident and smooth. There’s nothing wrong with some hemming and hawing and saying that you’re not comfortable discussing salary. Otherwise, you risk being the nervous and shifty eyed person.  That person doesn’t generally do well with salary or getting a job for that matter.

If you’ve got some specific questions you’d like me to answer, please feel free to post them in the comments.