Career Hacks: How to Make More Money in Your Current Job
By Roxanne Abercrombie
Have you ever sat at your desk despairing at the paltry pay check that’s just landed on your lap? Ever wanted to ask the powers that be for more money but felt too uncomfortable to do so? You’re not alone, as only 44% of employees actually angle for a higher salary, despite the fact that all of us want to get more money for our work.
Fortunately, you don’t have to find a new job to get a higher salary. Nor do you necessarily need to get a promotion. In today’s buoyant market, wages are steadily rising above the level of inflation and employees are in an opportune position to negotiate their salaries. Without having to resort to desperate measures, there are practical, straightforward measures that every employee can take to make more money in their job. Here’s how you can fatten up your pay check and boost your bank balance in 5 simple steps:
1. Do your market research
If you want to get more money for those 90,000 hours of your life you spend at work, you need to know your value first. Take half an hour out of your evening to research average salaries and skill requirements for the role you work and prepare to be in for an eye-opener. You can use white papers, online salary survey tools or even job board searches to find the information you’re looking for.
When you’ve gathered up your information, you can then use it as leverage to negotiate your pay packet. You might find that you’re being paid less than the industry average, which will enable you to use your market knowledge as a tool to win more pay. Even better, you might discover that your skillset goes above and beyond what is ordinarily required for your role, making you rarer and therefore more likely to reap salary rewards.
2. Develop your skills
Employees who stand out for all the right reasons are the employees who are given raises and regular bonuses. In order to stand out, you need to differentiate yourself from everybody else in the company, and an extremely beneficial way to do so is to commit to sharpening your skills.
By undertaking further training – either internally or externally – you will demonstrate your dedication to the role and to your development within it. Continually building on your bank of knowledge will add value to your particular skillset and therein make your employer more likely to compensate you in order to hold onto it. It’s simple: the more you learn, the more you earn.
3. Secure some recommendations
If you’ve given exceptional service to a client, customer or even a colleague, they’re highly likely to remember it and recommend you. Don’t be afraid to approach the people you’ve impressed and ask them to vouch for your work. Whether it’s in the form of a LinkedIn recommendation, a telephone call to your employer or a short email testimonial, these kind of professional endorsements are sure to impress.
As valuable as extra skills are, personal recommendations from real people that you’ve worked with offer a powerful form of patronage that speak volumes about the positive impact you have in your day to day business. You might not like to ask, but when it comes to your career advancement you can’t afford to leave any stone unturned.
4. Keep records of your accomplishments
Take some time at the end of every week to make a note of your achievements. By doing so, you’ll be able to compile a comprehensive catalogue of everything you’ve achieved whilst at the company. Failing to take this step means that you’ll inevitably forget a large portion of the things you’ve done, and will also make it more difficult for you and your employer to gain a broader idea of your journey within the job. With all this impressive information to hand, you’ll be able to negotiate much more compellingly for a pay upgrade as you’ll be able to provide a historic backlog of all your successful efforts.
5. Get asking
By taking these steps, you’re in an excellent position to approach your employer and begin salary negotiations. As a hard-working team member armed with market knowledge, extra skills, backing and evidence of your achievements, you’ll offer a strong case for a pay bump. Remember, it’s a skills-short job market out there and employers are keen to retain their most committed performers. Employers are fully aware that in order to boost retention, they need to offer competitive rates and as such they’ll be open to realistic salary negotiations.
With salaries set to outstrip price rises in 2015, it really is a great time to get more money from your job. To do that, know exactly what you’re worth and have the confidence to go out and get it. What’s stopping you?
About the company...
The team at Social Hire won't just do social media management. Our team work with you to ensure your business sees great value from the service and that your team gets tangible results.
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