Keep this private 🤫

You shouldn’t tell them. Ever. [ladders-logo@2x.png] good monday morning, {NAME}, We’re whispering because we’re talking about something you need to keep private in your job search. Your salary. Inevitably, the recruiter or HR person or your future boss will ask you for your current or expected salary. You shouldn’t tell them. Ever. - Why? - It won’t get you higher pay. - It’ll likely lead to getting lower pay. - You don’t have to tell them to get the job. It won’t get you higher pay. Sharing your current compensation tends to put an upper limit or cap on how much your future employer will pay you. They often determine what they perceive as a “reasonable bump” and stick to that. It leads to lower pay. Companies have a range they want to pay for a particular position. By putting your compensation out there, your future employer is anchoring you into a specific pay and responsibility level. I.e., your skills and capabilities might really be a “Level 3”, but if you told them your pay is at the low range of their “Level 2”, they might get stuck there. You don’t need to. As much as they claim it’s necessary for the job interview, it isn’t. It’s very rare that a company truly won’t interview a talented candidate who can do the job just because she won’t share her compensation. In fact, I can’t actually recall hearing of a case where this happened in the past few years. That doesn’t mean the recruiter or HR person won’t try very, very hard to get you to give up this information. How? Commonly, they’ll proceed from pretending to be friends to using guilt and veiled threats: - “What’s your expected salary?” - “No, really, I just need to fill this form out in order to proceed.” - “I wouldn’t want to waste your time, so could you indicate what your desired compensation range is?” - “Hey, can you do me a favor, I need to indicate to my boss your comp range. He won’t like it if I don’t.” - “Hey, you’re being a little bit difficult here, we want to work with you, but I need to know your expected compensation.” - “I can’t proceed unless you tell me your expected compensation, so it might impact your ability to get a job here.” None of these are true. They don’t need to fill out a form, their boss didn’t bar them from advancing candidates without this data, and you won’t get kicked out of the process if you don’t share. They’re just curious. It’s part of their job to snoop for information. It helps them feel more confident that they can hire you at the end of the process - which is important to them, but not at all to you. So providing your expected compensation has almost zero impact on whether they want to work with you or not. And it has a very negative impact on your future earnings. Why is it better to not share your current or expected compensation? Companies have extra budget. Hiring people isn’t like going to a vending machine, putting in the right coins, and your product dropping to the slot. People, jobs, situations vary. Companies always have a little wiggle room for additional compensation in a role, depending on market prices. If you let them know your salary too soon, they won’t be as likely to throw more of this cash at you. Companies have multiple levels. They might be interviewing you for an assistant manager role, but it turns out you’re closer to a full manager in their org chart. Or you’re applying for a level 5 job, and you could be level 6 given your background. By prematurely anchoring their expectations that your compensation is at a lower level, they may not be as likely to offer you the higher level role. They haven’t had a chance to fall in love yet. Until your interviews, you haven’t had a chance to shine. When they get more and more convinced that you could be the right person for the job, they’ll worry less about how much you’re paid at your current company, and instead turn their focus towards how great it would be to have you in the role. Now. Overall, not sharing your current compensation changes the conversation from: “How much does {NAME} want to get paid?” to “What will it take to get {NAME} to accept our offer?” So how do you handle these questions? First off, realize that the people who do this for a living…do this for a living. They have a lot of tricks up their sleeves to get a lot of information out of you. They’re not nervous about it at all. It’s not their future compensation on the line. In fact, it sometimes feels like a little bit of a game to them. So always remember that you don’t have to share anything you don’t want to. And calling them out on their guilt-ridden, confidence-game, fake-friendly tactics is likely worth a few thousand bucks to you. When they ask “what’s your expected compensation?”, feel free to pick and choose from the below replies, depending on which ones you’re most comfortable with: “I’m not comfortable sharing that information, but I’m very excited about this job.” “I’m not certain of what the market is, why don’t you share with me your pay range and I can tell you if it’s too low?” “Oh, my current employer is plenty generous, but I’m looking forward to the opportunity to work with you guys.” “Sorry, is that required information? I’m really looking for a place that values me for my contributions and is looking to pay what they feel is market rate. Are you able to do that?” “That’s a very interesting question. How much do you think someone like me will be worth on today’s market?” “I’m excited to work at a company where I can maximize both my compensation and my contribution. So while I’m not sharing my compensation today, I am excited to hear what you’re offering.” “Well, I’m not going to share that information with you because it’s private. Why don’t you share where you are in terms of compensation for this role, and I’ll be able to tell you whether it lines up with the market after I’ve interviewed a few more places?” As I said, pick and choose from the above to find what works for you. If you find yourself using all seven in a negotiation, please write and tell me about it! And if you’re looking for specific help in salary negotiations, our affiliate [Levels.fyi](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QnaHR0cDovL2xldmVscy5meWkvc2VydmljZXMvP3JlZj1MYWRkZXJzVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~) offers [live help](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QnaHR0cDovL2xldmVscy5meWkvc2VydmljZXMvP3JlZj1MYWRkZXJzVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~) with your salary negotiations. As they put it: “Every offer is negotiable. We help you get paid more. Our team of experienced recruiters have helped hundreds evaluate & negotiate higher job offers.” Check them out [here](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QnaHR0cDovL2xldmVscy5meWkvc2VydmljZXMvP3JlZj1MYWRkZXJzVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~). Good luck in the search! I’m rooting for you, [Marc] ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0TnaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb20vZXhwZXJ0L21hcmMtY2VuZWRlbGxhP2x0bT1UZHdhek1JTVZVM3hzMG1DWEl3SXNoYzBoTUN5eXhXQnFFU1ZHSndySXFoZlZ5bTM5ZWdEWVNGRDNJQlZUJTJGN3Amc3Vic2NyaWJlcl90eXBlPW1lbWJlciZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW1lbWJlciZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1mb3VuZGVycy1sZXR0ZXImdXRtX2NvbnRlbnQ9Zm5sLTIwMjEtNS0zVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~ [Marc Cenedella](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0TnaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb20vZXhwZXJ0L21hcmMtY2VuZWRlbGxhP2x0bT1UZHdhek1JTVZVM3hzMG1DWEl3SXNoYzBoTUN5eXhXQnFFU1ZHSndySXFoZlZ5bTM5ZWdEWVNGRDNJQlZUJTJGN3Amc3Vic2NyaWJlcl90eXBlPW1lbWJlciZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW1lbWJlciZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1mb3VuZGVycy1sZXR0ZXImdXRtX2NvbnRlbnQ9Zm5sLTIwMjEtNS0zVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~) Founder [@cenedella](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0RUaHR0cHM6Ly90d2l0dGVyLmNvbS9jZW5lZGVsbGE_cmVmX3NyYz10d3NyYyU1RWdvb2dsZSU3Q3R3Y2FtcCU1RXNlcnAlN0N0d2dyJTVFYXV0aG9yVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~) ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QtaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb20vY2FyZWVyLWFkdmljZS9mZWVkVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~ ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QeaHR0cHM6Ly9mbGlwYm9hcmQuY29tL0BMYWRkZXJzVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~ ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QqaHR0cHM6Ly9hcHBsZS5uZXdzL1RFQnJmTjhmaVJzR2xUeU5ocUJSTjFRVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~ ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QgaHR0cHM6Ly9nZXRwb2NrZXQuY29tL0BsYWRkZXJzaHFXA3NwY0IKYIy2dY9gTzVkzFIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODhAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAD ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QoaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubGlua2VkaW4uY29tL2NvbXBhbnkvbGFkZGVyc1cDc3BjQgpgjLZ1j2BPNWTMUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW44OEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAM~ ~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QiaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZmFjZWJvb2suY29tL0xhZGRlcnNIUVcDc3BjQgpgjLZ1j2BPNWTMUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW44OEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAM~ © 2021 [Ladders, Inc.](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QaaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb21XA3NwY0IKYIy2dY9gTzVkzFIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODhAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAD) All Rights Reserved [Advertise with Us](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0TwaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb20vY2FyZWVyLWFkdmljZS9zaGFyZS15b3VyLW1lc3NhZ2Utd2l0aC1vdXItMTBtLW5ldHdvcms_bHRtPVRkd2F6TUlNVlUzeHMwbUNYSXdJc2hjMGhNQ3l5eFdCcUVTVkdKd3JJcWhmVnltMzllZ0RZU0ZEM0lCVlQlMkY3cCZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW1lbWJlciZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1mb3VuZGVycy1sZXR0ZXImdXRtX2NvbnRlbnQ9Zm5sLTIwMjEtNS0zVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~) |[Contact Us](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0TNaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb20vdGhlbGFkZGVycy1jb250YWN0P2x0bT1UZHdhek1JTVZVM3hzMG1DWEl3SXNoYzBoTUN5eXhXQnFFU1ZHSndySXFoZlZ5bTM5ZWdEWVNGRDNJQlZUJTJGN3AmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1tZW1iZXImdXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249Zm91bmRlcnMtbGV0dGVyJnV0bV9jb250ZW50PWZubC0yMDIxLTUtM1cDc3BjQgpgjLZ1j2BPNWTMUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW44OEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAM~) |[Unsubscribe](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0TbaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb20vZW1haWxPcHRPdXQvZm91bmRlci1uZXdzbGV0dGVyP3Rva2VuPVRkd2F6TUlNVlUzeHMwbUNYSXdJc2hjMGhNQ3l5eFdCcUVTVkdKd3JJcWhmVnltMzllZ0RZU0ZEM0lCVlQlMkY3cCZ1dG1fc291cmNlPW1lbWJlciZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1mb3VuZGVycy1sZXR0ZXImdXRtX2NvbnRlbnQ9Zm5sLTIwMjEtNS0zVwNzcGNCCmCMtnWPYE81ZMxSG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjg4QGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAw~~) You are receiving this email from our secure server at [Ladders, Inc.](~/AARvnQA~/RgRicnjQP0QaaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGhlbGFkZGVycy5jb21XA3NwY0IKYIy2dY9gTzVkzFIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luODhAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAD) because you signed up from [{EMAIL}](#) with the ZIP Code 06473 at 192.168.1.2. 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