Position yourself in relation to the household basket. Forgotten, the overpriced capsules, we find our old coffee maker, we extend our drink with water. Keep your values, while saving. For example by blacklisting brands that engage in “shrinkflation” (i.e. reducing the weight of products while selling them at the same price). It is the reality of daily costs that makes you aggressive when you understand that you have lost purchasing power. It hurts to think that you can’t even change your sofa if you have just bought a new washing machine. It was better before, when you could consider both over several months without giving up your vacation and without finding yourself with a crazy deadline to repay your loans. “With banking bans, take my wife, the sofa/The microwave, the fridge/And even my private life,” sang bitterly Florent Pagny, who defended his (dear) freedom of thought. For work, on the other hand, no shrink, especially since the workload of those who have resigned and not been replaced is trickling down to the service. Inflation is the pretext, but it is really time to ask for this increase that has been postponed. Plus 5%? 10%? He’s going to laugh in my face during the upcoming interview. “Why ask, then?” retorts Bertrand Favier, associate director of the Oresys firm, for whom negotiation has no secrets.
Have the right posture
First advice: convince yourself, in order to win over the big financier to his arguments. “To make a request, you must be convinced that this request is fair.” Throwing out a trial balloon in “it would be good, an increase for the team, which has worked miracles in a sluggish market” mode, between two doors after the executive committee, is equivalent to zero. “There is a posture to have,” insists the expert. Show yourself by fighting. If you sigh and ask yourself “do I really deserve a raise”, you have to give up or work. “Some women tend to be less confident and sometimes lament that their male colleagues have gotten a raise while they are still waiting.” It is not reserved for women, this famous imposter syndrome, which pursues ad vitam aeternam those who lack self-confidence to the point of feeling illegitimate. Even if we try to correct ourselves, conviction exudes from those who believe in it and makes those who lack it invisible. To become jealous of a competitor who gets a raise just by asking for it. What is his secret skill? Anticipation, the second tip. “In an employer/employee relationship, we have time to prepare,” recalls Bertrand Favier. Inflation affects the lowest wages, but for others, there are many other arguments to be considered. This means that you have to take up your files, your successes, your added value, the work of your team, your involvement, your strokes of genius, and put them forward. With conviction. In this argumentative policy, show what you have done best without necessarily having the appropriate salary in front of you. “We have to be clear and if it’s more than 20%, it’s more than 20%.” When preparing, you also need to know to whom you are going to address your request: “Sometimes, corporate have no idea what the teams are doing.” Document, tell.
Third tip: “When there are cycles of increase, make your requests in advance.” This avoids being forgotten or having to wait for the next envelope to pass. It is therefore necessary to find out about the salary increase processes, then act on the agenda (and revenues) of the superintendent of finance.
Go through your N + 1 to convince your N + 2
Step four: don’t stop at the next floor, but aim higher. If your boss is convinced but he in turn must be the spokesperson to his superior, you need to know the company and the political games to whisper the arguments that will hit the mark. There is no point talking about catching up, unless your employer is passionate about corporate social responsibility (CSR) or attentive to gender equality. “It’s a different angle of view, you have to put yourself in their place.” Figures, profits, ideas, productivity. Quality, quantity. Don’t get discouraged or imagine that a double-digit increase will be refused. This is the time to find out about salaries elsewhere, about the competition, about your position. And yet, despite all our efforts, we can fail. Fifth tip: come out on top by offering to meet again in six months. And be clear with yourself about the attitude to have in the event of another refusal.