Land Your Dream Job
(And Your Dream Paycheck)
Victoria Merriman
Founding Partner, Digital Loom
What’s scary to you?
Amy Cuddy clip
Power
Power = success in. . .
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Sizing up the culture
Selling yourself
Negotiating your salary
Landing your dream job
Sizing up the culture
“Women look for a workplace that
appreciates what they bring to the
role and demonstrates compatible
values.”
Laura Henderson
How Women Lead: The 8 Essential Strategies
Successful Women Know
Culture Fit
For employee:
second only in importance to salary.
For boss:
can be more important than skill set.
Culture Fit Exercise
Interview the Job
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Bring your questions
Be nosy
Ask to meet the team
(A good boss will only think more highly of you.)
Stalk Them!
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Glassdoor.com
The boss’s Twitter
The company Facebook page
Employees’ LinkedIn
Etc. etc.
Selling Yourself
Character
+
Skills
Selling Yourself
Character
Be as authentic
as possible
Skills
Selling Yourself
Character
Skills
Be as authentic
as you can
Fake it till you
make it
Authenticity
“Authenticity is a collection of choices
that we have to make every day. It's
about the choice to show up and be
real. The choice to be honest. The
choice to let our true selves be seen.”
Brené Brown
The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think
You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are
Authenticity clip
Fake it till you make it
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Have a portfolio. Even if it’s a fake one.
When asked, say you can do it.
(Assuming you want to learn.)
Offer to prove yourself!
Power Poses
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Power Poses
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Selling yourself =
Listening
& Asking
Negotiating salary
"If you think of a $100,000 salary, and one person negotiates and
gets $107,000, and the other doesn’t, what is the cost of that? In a
simple-minded way, some people say, is $7,000 really worth risking
my reputation over? And I agree, $7,000 may not be worth your
reputation.
But that’s not the correct analysis, because that $7,000 is
compounded. If you and your counterpart who negotiated are
treated identically by the company—you are given the same raises
and promotions—35 years later, you will have to work eight more
years to be as wealthy as your counterpart at retirement. Now, the
question is: $7,000 may not be worth the risk, but how about eight
years of your life?"
Margaret A. Neale
Stanford Graduate School of Business
2 Negotiations
Bob
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9 months experience
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Knew Drupal module
development but not theming
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Asking salary: $88,000
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Expected salary for experience
level: <$65,000
2 Negotiations
Linda
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8 years’ experience
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Connections in our field
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Asking salary: $55,000
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Expected salary for experience
level: >$75,000
What did Linda do wrong?
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Gave a number right away.
(Never do this, even if asked!)
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Made assumptions about what the company
can afford.
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Got over-excited about the position.
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Didn’t go in with a well-researched number in
mind.
Researching salaries
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Salary reports
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Ask others who do your job
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Ask owners/managers in similar firms
what they pay
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Running theme: don’t be shy talking about
money!
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Salary Calculator
Always. Negotiate.
When we make someone an offer, we always aim
low because we are expecting a counteroffer.
A mistake both genders make!
Lifestyle-based negotiation
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“I made $X at my last job, so that's what I'd like
to make now.”
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“I have a mortgage and two kids’ college tuition
to pay for.”
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“I need 4 weeks' vacation because I go away
with my family to Maine every summer.”
Negotiate in the boss’s terms
Company-centered negotiation
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“I don’t need training, so I’ll be profitable right
away.”
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“I do need training, so I’m willing to start at a
lower salary assuming we can revisit in 3
months after I’ve proven my value.”
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“I can already see places in your process that
could be more efficient.”
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“Hiring me will save money by _____”
Don’t forget. . .
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Time off and benefits have value too.
(Ahem. . . Salary Calculator!)
Email is your friend.
Temporary discomfort of negotiation is
better than long-term discomfort of a
crappy job or low salary.
One last thought
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Women are
better than men
at negotiating on
behalf of others.
Thank you!