Hi Beautiful,
There is a moment in almost every interview when a recruiter asks what you are expecting to earn. Most of us answer it in about four seconds, with a number that feels safe rather than a number that is true.
That number then sets the ceiling for everything that follows.
This whole letter in three sentences.
–> The first number you name becomes the starting point for the whole conversation, and most of us name it before checking what the work is actually worth here.
–> Moving countries makes it harder: you are new to the market, you are grateful for the offer, and many of us come from a culture where talking about money is impolite.
–> On Tuesday, October 13, English Speaking Club takes this apart in English, with the words you need to do it in a real conversation.
WHY THIS IS HARDER FOR US
Three things stacked on top
The first is information. You do not know yet what this role pays in this city, and your sense of what counts as a lot of money is still calibrated to the country you came from.
The second is gratitude. Somebody finally said yes after months of applications, and asking for more feels like putting the whole thing at risk.
The third is upbringing. Plenty of us were raised in places where discussing salary out loud was considered rude, and that does not switch off because you changed address.
WHAT IS ACTUALLY ON THE TABLE
Salary is one line on a longer list
Base pay is the obvious part, and it is often the least flexible part. Many companies have more room in a signing bonus, in extra vacation days, in remote days, in the start date, in the title, in a professional development budget, or in when your first review happens.
"Is there any room for negotiation?" is a sentence you are allowed to say out loud. The worst answer you will get is no, and that leaves you exactly where you already were.
QUESTIONS WE WILL BE ASKING
Bring your own answers
Have you ever negotiated a job offer, and how did it go?
How do you answer "what are your salary expectations" without naming a number too early?
Should you negotiate even when the offer already makes you happy?
What would you do if you found out a colleague earns more for the same work?
How would you ask for a raise without another offer in your hand?
Do women and men negotiate differently, and if so, why?
THE WORDS FOR IT
Knowing the phrase is half the courage
Negotiating in a second language has its own difficulty: you know what you want to say, and the English for it arrives two sentences late. The vocabulary for this conversation is small and learnable, and we have collected it for you.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Mon, Oct 12 · 6:30 PM ET · Builders Circle: 10-week sprint with Gaukhar Dossova. Eleven women are halfway through the sprint, each with one project and a result they committed to by December 7. Every Monday they report on what moved and what is stuck. This cohort is closed, and you can put your name down for the January group here: https://luma.com/jyvr3cm0.
Tue, Oct 13 · 1:00-3:00 PM ET · Open Desk: Work Together Hours with Maria Gordienko. Two hours of quiet co-working for the task you keep moving to next week. Maria opens the room and works on her own things while you work on yours, mics stay muted, and nobody asks how you are doing. Drop in for twenty minutes or stay for all of it → https://luma.com/e0zubre3
Tue, Oct 13 · 6:00 PM ET · English Speaking Club with Iuliia Dubrovskaia. This week: Know Your Worth, negotiating job offers and counteroffers. A speaking club rather than an English class, so there are no grammar drills and mistakes are part of how it works. Free and open to everyone. → https://luma.com/qj9tf6z0
See you inside.
Look up what your role actually pays in your city this week, before anyone asks you for a number.
Azhar & Maria
Founders, She's NTAP (New to America Pro)
P.S.
Hit reply and tell us how your last salary conversation went. We read everything, and these stories repeat far more than any of us realizes.