I wrote this two days ago, and didn't want to post it immediately. Now that the deal is in ink, I see no reason why I shouldn't.

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Salary Negotiation
Started: Mon Jan 31 14:22:44 MST 2000
Finished: Mon Jan 31 15:37:57 MST 2000

In the interest of not showing all the cards in my hand, this rambling will not appear on Bitscape's Lounge until after the negotiation process is complete, if at all.

Well, I'm not sure whether I'm a total blithering idiot or doing this the right way. Let's back up and start with this morning.

Ok, so today, I was scheduled to go in to eSoft and negotiate a salary. Having absolutely no clue as to how to go about this process, I went to the trusty Google to find some information. I found a bunch of articles at various career centers, magazines, and educational institutions on the subject, many with conflicting advise on several points regarding how to conduct the process.

Over the course of several hours, I gained much knowledge on the art of negotiation. One point made by an article I read I can definitely relate to. (paraphrasing) Unless you're a lawyer or an agent, chances are this is one of the most uncomfortable things you will ever have to do. Amen to that.

But, knowing that it is a necessary part of the hiring process, I proceeded to gather as many bits knowledge and tips as my skull could get a hold of. Since my soon-to-be employer, in the email last Friday, started by asking what my salary requirements would be, I knew the burden to name a figure was on me.

(One of the articles I read said you should try to get the company to name what they believe you're worth first. Others said it was good to name a high figure up front. I followed the latter advise. I probably should have done what the first article said.)

One of the things all my sources agreed upon was that you should research what other companies in the industry currently pay people in similar positions. I did this, and discovered that (not surprisingly), according to surveys, most people doing the job I'm going to be doing make a relatively generous sum. Much more than what I'd need to live on. That's for sure.

So, the time came, and I made my way to the lovely eSoft building. I knew what the first question would be, and it was. "What's your salary requirement?" My throat going dry (I hate that. It always seems to happen during the most inopportune times), I proceeded to name a range that was in the general area of what people doing software development and web programming supposably make. (Even though it was significantly more than what I would need, or what I would be more than happy to accept. Just following instructions written by people who know their stuff when it comes to this, and published it on the web for poor ignorant saps like me.)

My future boss took a moment, apparently contemplating the figure I had named, then proceeded to inform me that this was much higher than what they normally pay starting people in my position who have not completed a college education. I said I understood this, was flexible, and willing to bend (understatement of the century), and asked him to name what they do normally pay people in my position.

He proceeded to name a range surprisingly close to the amount I had originally calculated would be sufficient to live rather comfortably on. (In fact, I took a minute this morning to roughly figure what a good living wage would be, based on estimated costs of housing, food, car payments, PC hardware, other miscellaneous niceties, and of course, taxes. The number I came up with was smack in the middle of the range he would later name. Exactly.) Why an employer couldn't just offer a decent amount like that to begin with is beyond me.

According to some articles I read, (I'm not naming specific sources here, because I surfed randomly to so many different spots that trying to go back and figure out what came from where would be stupid.) employers will often try to get new hires to name their onwn salaries in the hopes of getting people to name something lower than what they're worth.

That certainly wasn't the case for me. In fact, I probably got quite a bit greedier than I would have been, had they just come out asd said what a typical salary for a new employee is. Ok, so anyway, he asked how I had come up with this figure, and why would I be worth this much to the company. Was it comparable to what I had been making at x13? lol.

It was all I could do not to blurt out, "Ah, I'm just an idiot and have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to this negotiation stuff." I was out of my league. I did my best to try to justify my figure by saying that I was a good programmer who knew several languages. I don't think I came across very convincingly. (Blast! Now I know what I should have said. Had I only remembered the words of Xena. "I have many skills." Saying it just like Lucy Lawless.)

I answered honestly. I said I had gotten my figures by researching what programmers in my position typically make in the industry, but I understood and am willing to take a lower salary due to my lack of experience and formal education. (My throat going dryer every second, and my speech more stuttering.)

Well, anyway, he said that since our figures were so far apart, he'd have to go talk to management about it, and we're going to meet again in a couple days. (I wished I could have just said, "Well, the sum you name actually sounds pretty reasonable. I'd be willing to take that, especially since I'll get to work here with all these Linux geeks." But alas, I couldn't back out of what I had already said without totally losing my credibility.) I expressed that I was sure we could find some way to come to an agreement.

As if to confirm this, he asked if I would like to take home one of their TEAM Internet boxes to play around with for the next couple weeks to become more familiar with the product. (My starting date has been pushed back to February 14th, because they're moving to a bigger office a few meters away. It would be easier to have me settle in after the transition than before/during it.)

So, Wednesday's meeting will have a double purpose. More salary talk, and I'll be returning home with one of their spiffy web appliance boxes, along with its root password. :)

That actually gives me a great deal of confidence that we're going to reach an agreement, and that my employer thinks so as well. Otherwise, why risk the cost of sending their merchandise home with me? (I also read that an employer who has gone through the entire interview process has a much greater interest in making sure someone gets hired, since just the cost of recruiting and interviewing quite significant. They'd rather expend a few more bucks meeting someone's demands than have to go out and find another candidate and start over.)

So anyway, it's kind of exciting, but also kind of annoying. I feel like one of those evil greedy corporate types I'm always criticizing. My general philosophy is that it's best to just take and live on what you need, no more. OTOH, if you're gonna play the game, you might as well play it as well as you can.(In my case, like a bumbling fool.)

We'll see how this works out. I'm sure we'll find some agreement, through some long and gruelling process, even though I'd be pretty happy to just take what they were offering (which again leads me to wonder, why didn't they just offer what they were willing to pay off the bat?). I'll just be glad when this part is over and I can go to work doing what I enjoy and know how to do. It's like buying fuel in tradewars, but a lot more complicated, with a lot more at stake. :)

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