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The first time I won a negotiation was the second time I negotiated. It was after a promotion. I was offered the new job with a standard 10% increase. That increase left me just $400 shy of a rounded $40,000. So I asked for $400/year more. This translates to $7.69 extra per week—before taxes! It’s a tiny amount that I wasn’t going to feel in my wallet but I was going to feel it in my ego. It would move me to a new tier of earning.
It may seem small now but that $400 was the just the right bite-size piece for me to win my first negotiation. It’s important to start something new—something that you’re not very good at—with a goal that feels possible.
When they asked if I wouldn’t take the promotion over this $400, I had to say it would make me reconsider. It sounds silly but I had to express that it was up to me to walk away—an event that would have left the company with a lot more than $400 worth of costs. It was my way of gaining some power and making them move that number up. In the end, they did.
If you’re new to negotiations, or if you’re just feeling pretty rusty at them, go for a small goal! The important thing is to go for something that will give you an immediate boost in your confidence—even if it’s not much of a boost in your income. There will be more negotiations. Your confidence is the thing that will get you to bigger and bigger wins.