"Salary range" stops me.

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Then why do you need to ask? Why not find the person you like, offer a salary (if you haven't already indicated what it is beforehand which IMO is the best way), and then negotiate from there? If what they say doesn't affect whether you choose them or not, why ask?

If it is a role that exists already, why is the employer not offering the exact same salary? This really stumps me. I once quit my job as a PA, and they hired the receptionist to replace me. She had less experience/skill than me (i.e. she didn't really know how to use computers and it was a computer-based role), but asked for a few thousand k more than what I was paid and got it, because she had a daughter. I thought this was ridiculous.

I understand being frustrated by people's inflated opinion of their value, but I'm surprised at your conclusion. If they're asking for a lot of money wouldn't you rather know that up-front so you can potentially rule them out earlier? If they tell you later you'll just have wasted more of your time.

To be clear, I don't think a candidate should ever volunteer what salary they want or bring up salary discussions at all, but if the employer asks a question about it then they should absolutely answer that question. It seems a bit harsh, not to mention counter-productive, to penalise them for doing just that - answering the question your company asked them. Yes, it may be HR that asked, not you personally, but you and "HR" represent the same company and should act consistently towards the candidate.

The amount of knowledge I have is grossly disproportionate to the amount which I am being paid.

Employers are not likely to accept or consider such a claim, so I don't tell them, but it is true. Today I was talking to one of the senior management staff where I work, and she told me "You know if they just knew how much you knew, they'd be throwing money at you right and left and you'd be out of here in one minute and we'd be happy for you."

I suppose that saying that was intended to make me feel good, but instead I nearly started crying, because I am very aware that the amount I am being paid is not reasonable, but I don't know how to get into a situation in which I would be paid reasonably.

There are movies like Good Will Hunting, in which someone who has significant intelligence ends up working in a job which is significantly below their capability. I'm in a position like that. How can I know what is reasonable pay when I have never been paid even remotely reasonably? I grew up in an area of significant poverty, and when I was a child I often didn't have enough to eat. As a teenager and while in college, my lack of intuition to even attempt to form any kind of network with people made finding work very difficult. I got very good grades, but aside from one group project and one time when I was invited by two people who had the same two classes together to get pizza for lunch, I never talked to any other student or teacher more than a few feet of a classroom. Before learning about AS, I never had any understanding how to get a job. I knew about applications, but had no idea how to format a résumé, what employers might consider relevant, et cetera. All I had was an interest in this one particular subject, so instead of working, I spent day and night for decades(because it had been my interest even when I was very young and not even in high school yet). I used my ability to memorize to get a job in my area of knowledge, and have had that job for many years. My knowledge is quite great, but the amount that I've ever been paid is really pathetic.

I'd love to be paid hundreds of dollars per hour, but that's probably not reasonable. I live in a poor area, but I want to move, so that adds another problem, because I don't know about the cost of living anywhere else. Asking me what I want to be paid is like asking someone from Haiti how much they should make if moving to Beverly Hills. My parents were divorced. My mom never made enough money. I don't know what my dad made because I didn't see him for decades. My mom didn't speak to me about money. I could tell you what I would consider enough money to live off of, but I couldn't give you any approximation at to whether that was commensurate with my knowledge, especially outside of this geographic area.

If there are two candidates you believe have similar qualifications and one is asking for more money, would you not be more likely to favor the candidate asking for more money? Now consider an HR employee who has very little understanding of any subject, other than how to compare documents. Money will be one of their top concerns.

I started out underpaid, and have been constantly aggressively trying to catch up. I've been in lucky situations at times where I was in a position to demand that they break the rules and give me exceptional raises, but opportunities like this are extremely rare. I'm in pretty decent shape now, but I'm going to continue to increase my wages, because I can do it pretty easily.

I think that the best way to increase your salary is to company hop. I'm sure it depends on your field, position, and location, but I tend to leave jobs after 2-3 years; when I head for the next job, I'm usually looking for a 10% to 20% jump in salary. If you're making under 6 figures, you might be able to ask for a higher percentage increase with a straight face. It's most efficient to do this right after you get a raise, but it's only worth waiting on that raise if the raise is going to be decent. New employers don't ask "when" your salary was last adjusted - they only care about what salary you left with, so that they can increase it enough that you're happy.

It's rare as hell that your current employer will increase your salary unless you're playing tough with them and forcing them to worry about losing you. This is normal - you never think about "paying" for something you already have... you think about "buying" something shiny and new. Companies are no different - they might bribe you with an increase if they realize that they need you (at that moment) or if you get a promotion, but they'll only give you as much as they feel they absolutely have to.

New employers see this differently - they don't know you, and want to give you whatever it will take you make you happy enough that you stay for a good while. To them, you're something new worth buying, and they'll pay more for you. They'll probably expect you to be better than the last guy, so they'll be willing to pay more for you. Make them buy you... come in with a reasonable increase from what you were making before.. they're expecting it. It actually looks odd (to me) if someone is applying for a job but not asking for a reasonable increase. If they're asking too much, they're delusional. If they're asking too little, they're desperate and therefore undesirable.

Here's the trap though... when you get an offer at another company, your current employer will suddenly be forced to reevaluate how much they need you, and will often give a counter-offer. I recommend against accepting this - walk away and take the new job. Although you're worth more than the current employer was paying you, and they suddenly have realized this, they're going to resent being put in this position in the long run. They were put into an uncomfortable position because you're not loyal enough to suffer with your current wage. With the increase in wages, they actually will expect more from you (they have to be "buying" something when they pay for anything), and they'll never be as happy with you as they were before.

Bottom line - if you want more money, find a new company and ask for a reasonable increase. Base it on what is reasonable for the position and on what you were making at the last job. Stay long enough that the next employer will think that you're not a flake or a flight risk, then do it again. Your current employer expects your dedication because you should be loyal; a new employer is going to buy your love.

They won't accept that at face value, sure, but could you demonstrate your knowledge to them? I'm sure you love talking about your interest, so invite them to ask you whatever they want about the subject and impress them with your knowledge!



You know that what you're being paid is "below reasonable", so you do have at least some vague idea of what "reasonable" is - or at least where it starts. Could it be that you're just not satisfied with knowing a very rough "ballpark" figure? It's probably an aspie thing to want an answer to be precise, but in this case there is simply no such thing. I also dislike answering a question when I don't think the answer is quite right, but that's what you'll have to do if you're to complete a job application. Maybe it would help to remember that the employer doesn't know the "correct" answer either (since there isn't one).

Your salary is all about the (perceived) value you deliver to an employer. How much you want or need is irrelevant to that. How much you're being paid now is also, theoretically, irrelevant. In practice, employers do tend to ask for your current salary at some stage (in addition to expected salary) and most will assume that you "must be" worth somewhere around that much. For that reason I'd agree with mereexistance - ask for a significant, but not massive, increase from your current salary. You can repeat the process later and the good news is it only gets easier with practice. The import thing is: don't get so hung up on getting this figure correct that you don't take any action at all. Worst come to worst, get someone else to pick a salary for you and just use their number, if you must! (Someone who would have some idea, obviously.)

If there's a colleague you can trust you might try discussing with them what a reasonable salary would be for your position. Don't do it with someone in the exact same role as you, though, because that inevitable means comparing your salary to theirs. Also, have you actually tried speaking to your manager about getting a raise? Obviously it depends on what kind of relationship you have with them. If it's a good relationship they might at least tell you what they think they're worth, even if they can't pay it. Do you have annual reviews? Does salary get discussed there? What about that senior manager that made the comment about your worth - could you talk to her further and to at least get an idea of what you're worth? Maybe she can even help you get it if she's senior.

I hate those questions. I don't know want to give ask for too much and I don't want to screw myself either. Search for average/median statistics for whatever job it is. That should give you a general idea for a range.