How to Negotiate Salary for Your Next Career Move

Posted by Nelson Resume on 14 Sep 2025

Negotiating a salary can be difficult to talk about, because it involves balancing what you think you’re worth versus the amount an employer believes they can afford. However, if done correctly, it can be positive for both sides that results in a higher salary for the employee as well as greater satisfaction for the employees in their work. Learn how to negotiate your salary with confidence.

The most important takeaways

  • Before you negotiate your salary study market rates and industry standards to make sure that the salary you request is reasonable.
  • Gather information through networking with colleagues, using websites like LinkedIn Salary and Glassdoor, as well as reaching out to professional networks.
  • Plan your talk points ahead of the time, including education and certificates and years of relevant knowledge, accomplishments and achievements, unique skill set & abilities, industry expertise, and training opportunities.
  • During the negotiation, be assertive and confident, yet flexible and open-minded. You should highlight tangible results you’ve achieved in your previous roles.
  • Keep a positive and upbeat tone throughout the conversation and make sure you are listening actively.

Do your research

Before entering into any salary negotiation, you need to do thorough research on market rates and industry standards to ensure that your salary suggestion is reasonable. The factors that could affect this could include experience level, company size as well as location. (?). Another great method to gather information is to make connections with colleagues or others in your chosen area of work.

Research Online

Utilizing online resources, such as [LinkedIn SalaryWith the help of some online resources like [LinkedIn Salary (https http://www. linkedin. com/salary) and [GlassdoorGlassdoor (https: //www. glassdoor. com/Salaries/index. htm) you will get a more substantial approach towards the benchmarking range of salaries that companies offer for the exact job. This will give you an idea of the current market prices and also other aspects related to the job.

Your Network is Essential

Get insight from talking to people who have had similar roles or reaching out through professional networks as well doing brainstorming members within professional organizations.

Plan talking points

Time spent preparing for any negotiations is always a good time spent. You’ll feel much more confident when presenting your case if you have a set of talking points outlined in advance.

Here are some ideas of items you could consider including in your salary negotiation:

  • Training and certification
  • Experience gained through years of relevant work
  • Achievements and results
  • A unique set of skills and characteristics (e.g. the ability to speak two languages)
  • Know-how in the field
  • Training potential

Notes and notebooks can also help during conversations so it is not lost crucial points.

Be confident & concise

In a negotiation for a salary it’s crucial to appear confident and clear. Make sure you are clear about your past experiences, achievements and job expectations. It is important to keep a positive attitude throughout this discussion so that the employer isn’t coming across as unfriendly.

Highlight Tangible Results

Simply stating one is ambitious, hardworking, and aspire-driven person may not be enough for an impactful appeal. So put forward clear statistics regarding the ways in which previous jobs made an impact in the workplace or how valuable are specific skills that can benefit an organization.

Be flexible

If the employer cannot agree to your salary or compensation arrangement being flexible and open can help create space for discussions. You could ask about alternative incentives like performance-based bonus arrangements instead of Base salary(? ).

Make sure to remain professional during the negotiation process - no matter how well or not: getting too defensive or making unreasonable demands will likely result in an unfavourable outcome for all parties affected.

Practice active listening

Listening is as crucial as speaking during these kinds of conversations. Do listen actively from another party while you negotiate, listening to the requests carefully and clarifying questions if needed, but keeping to the what you originally requested. Ultimately both parties should achieve satisfactory results.

Take what you have learned from these conversations and incorporate it into any future negotiations that you’re likely to be involved in. The tips mentioned above will go a long way towards maximizing the chances of achieving an agreement that is mutually beneficial.

Your network is important Speak to friends who have held similar roles or connect with professionally-oriented networks as well doing brainstorming members of professional associations.
Plan talking points Education & certification, Years of relevant experience and achievements, unique skill set and qualities (e.g. multilingualism) and industry knowledge. Potential for training
Be confident & concise Be clear about your experience your accomplishments and expectations for the job. Highlight Tangible Results.
Keep your mind open Ask about alternative incentives like the performance-based bonuses instead of Base salary. (?). Make sure to remain professional during the negotiation process.
Practice active listening Listening is equally as important as communicating during these types of conversations. You can take the lessons you’ve learned away from these conversations and incorporate them into future discussions you’ll likely be involved in.


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Frequently Answered Questions

What is the concept of salary negotiation?

Negotiating salary is negotiating and finalizing the compensation package for a position. When you negotiate this it is possible to discuss not just your salary base, but also benefits like health insurance, retirement plans as well as other benefits.

Why is it so important to discuss salary?

Negotiating your salary will give you a more secure financial future and show you’re confident about your worth. This can help you not leave money on the table.

What is the best time to negotiate the salary?

It is recommended to begin negotiations following the acceptance of an offer to ensure that everyone is aware of what is being negotiated. In this way, negotiations will be focused on securing perfect terms while avoiding unexpected unintentional surprises.

What if I am happy with the offered package with no negotiation?

If you receive an offer and are pleased with it, then there’s no reason to bargain. However, it’s still essential to be clear about what your employer’s expectations regarding things such as compensation for training or performance-based bonuses.

Can I negotiate my salary if changing careers?

Negotiating salary when you change career paths can require extra training because your previous work experiences may not be directly applicable or relate to the new duties. Find out what similar jobs in similar industries pay in order to get a solid understanding of realistic expectations for you, based on your particular situation.

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