There are several arguments many employees are using in order to negotiate with their employers for a higher salary. Even though they might appear as good reasons for increasing a salary to an employee, it does not necessarily work in the same way for an employer. It is important to be aware of such arguments. Sometimes, it is better to resign from them altogether, whereas in other situations it is necessary to have a lot of extra support for them.
You are going to work really hard and have great achievements
Such promises are unfortunately just promises and you will rarely see and employer willing to increase a salary just because an employee has promised such amazing things to him or her. You should look at this from the point of view of your boss as for this person such an agreement will work as a loan without any guarantees of you giving the money back.
How can you make this argument work?
Certainly, your real achievements are the best illustration of your value for the company. They become even stronger if you are able to show your employer real figures and statistics of the income the company was able to generate due to your work.
You have expanded your skills and knowledge while working at the company
While employees find this argument as something very positive about then, actually, for many managers, this argument should come as something absolutely natural for a person who has already spent some time on the same vacancy. In the reality, a great number of professions require constant learning and building skills and it is actually needed for being able to keep your working place rather than to be praised with a higher salary and a higher position.
When can this argument work?
As you can now understand, the argument should go beyond the skills and knowledge required by your vacancy. That is why if you want the argument to work, you need to add some extra skills, knowledge or goals which are not necessarily required by your current position.
You have already worked for a long time for the company
For many employees the time spent at the company is one of the determining variables when it comes to the increase of a salary. Still, it does not necessarily work in such a way. In fact, this might even make your boss wonder why you are actually still stuck at the same working position despite such a long time spent at work.
How can you make this argument work?
In order to benefit from such an argument, you should also show your boss all of the positive things you have received from the company during this time as well as the things you have made for it.
Your private life is rather complex
Even though it might feel unfair when one’s private life is not easy and to resolve some of its problems one just needs more money, this is actually not a problem of your boss. It is just better not to expect from your boss to be thus altruistic that he or she will be willing to increase your salary because your large family is living in a one-room apartment or you are currently returning a bank loan. These are your personal issues and your employer will not be spending money on resolving them.
Should you even mention your personal life situation while negotiating for salary?
You can actually do it if you want to ask for more money using an argument of willingness to work more. You can ask your boss to give you more tasks which is required for receiving a particular extra sum to your current salary and mention your personal life as one of the reasons you would like to do it for. At the same time, you certainly should not completely rely on such an argument.
Making an ultimatum of leaving the company if your salary is not increased
If you are going to use such an argument, you should be prepared to really leave the company in the case of getting a negative response from your employer. That is why it is better to do it when you have already received a job offer from another company so you really have a place to leave. If this is not the situation, you should never use such an argument as staying at the company after giving such a choice to your employer will make you look like a layer and a person who is blackmailing others. You can easily imagine how much this will spoil your relations with the boss.
What is the best way to use this argument?
The most appropriate form is to speak to your employer as a friend rather than a foe. You can tell the boss how much you would prefer to stay in the team and find it a lot of benefits the company is giving to you as well as the benefits you can bring to it. Yet, you have to leave because there is better financial offer, so there is nothing personal in your choice.