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How to Ask For a Raise

11/13/2012 By 23 Comments

Money on the Table, originally uploaded to Flickr by tuchodi.How DO you ask for a raise?  Reader K asks this classic question…

I am looking for tips on how to successfully ask for a raise! I have a unique situation – I was promoted just under 1 year ago, and got a significant raise in my salary. However – I actually took a pay cut, since I went from base salary + commission. The powers that be don’t view commission as part of your salary, so I essentially took a 20k pay cut if you look at my W2′s, but on paper I earned a significant raise. Now, looking online at salary ranges for my position and the company’s pay grade chart, a 15% raise would put me smack dab in the middle of nationwide salaries in positions like mine, and my company’s pay grade chart. Asking for a 15% raise seems ballsy to me, especially in this economy, but I have received a LOT of praise this year, including from the CEO directly. I feel I have earned it. Suggestion or tips on how to go about this? I actually have never asked for a raise before! Thank you!

Congratulations on your great year, and the bump (on paper, at least) in salary.  A lot has been written about how women don’t negotiate raises the same way men do — we hesitate to do it, we ask for too little, we don’t do it often enough (to say nothing of employers who have a bias against women). (Pictured.) [Read more...]

Filed Under: Career, Interviewing, Job Hunting, Money, Transitions

How to Secretly Use LinkedIn to Change Careers

09/27/2012 By 72 Comments

Secret, originally uploaded to Flickr by val.pearl.How do you use LinkedIn to get a new job — without alerting your coworkers or boss that you’ve got one foot out the door? Reader B has a GREAT question:

I am nearly six years into my first job, which is in commercial insurance. I want to transition out of this industry and thought augmenting my LinkedIn profile would be helpful (to show up in search results, connect to new contacts, etc.). HOWEVER, my entire work history and a good proportion of my contacts skew insurance. Since my current co-workers can view my profile (through second and tertiary contacts – I am not directly linked to any of them at present), I don’t want to raise any red flags at my office. Any suggestions?

Excellent question! I’ll be 100% honest here: whenever I get a little LinkedIn activity notification that someone has updated their experience, I wonder whether they’re starting to look around for a new job. I suppose it’s a bit like wearing a suit — if you never, ever wear a suit to the office and then one day, you do, everyone starts to wonder whether you’ve had an interview that day. But if you’re savvy about your LinkedIn usage, though, you can get around that. (Pictured: Secret, originally uploaded to Flickr by val.pearl.)

I think there are two phases to using LinkedIn to change careers. The first phase is the research phase, when you want to discreetly look at other people’s profiles, see what connections you might have, and join a lot of new groups in your target industry to get an idea for the conversations happening within the industry. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Career, Interviewing, Networking, Social Media, Transitions

How to Announce Your Pregnancy At Work

08/28/2012 By 84 Comments

Model SEverine Pregnant Photo 3, originally uploaded to Flickr by MestreechCity.How (and when) do you tell your boss you’re pregnant?  What should you factor into consideration?  I’ve had three different readers write to me with a question along these lines, so now seems like a great time to discuss this.  Reader K is one of those readers:

Wondering what the readers think about the timing of telling your firm you are pregnant.  I have made it through the 1st trimester without anyone noticing my being drag-ass tired and have somehow kept up respectable billable hours in the meantime.  I planned on telling people next week, but confidentially shared the news over lunch with a female partner (I am beginning my fourth year as an associate on partner track) and her concern was my timing in terms of telling the guys/powers that be about the pregnancy. She doesn’t think I should tell them right away so that I have more time where they are continuing to give me good assignments.  Besides my desire to remain on good cases, other “concerns” discussed are: 1) the fact that bonuses happen at end of the year (and that I not draw the short stick in an otherwise profitable year); and 2) review/raise time in early spring (while I am on maternity leave).  Next year is the year I expected a big jump based on profitability, etc, and I hope this timing doesn’t derail all of that hard work.  Is it better for me to rip the band-aid off and express these concerns with the managing partner (who I think I can have an honest discussion with) or wait until I have to tell so that there is more time for me to continue to get assigned the good work (ie, before the guys subconsciously take me off the fast track).  I was planning on providing my fact-based plan of action (6 weeks short term disability, begin part time work during that time as I am able, child care taken care of, etc) at the same time.  Any suggestions on the timing of all of this and how the conversation should go down?

Congratulations!  (Pictured.) Here are some thoughts, both for K and other first-time moms:

- Wait as long as possible.  K is happily past her first trimester, which can be exhausting and always carries with it the risk of miscarriage.  But she’s still got six months to go before she’ll need maternity leave, so why would she tell the powers that be?  Here are my thoughts:  she won’t need special accommodations.  (She should be in the “sweet spot” for pregnancy — most women experience much less nausea, fatigue, and other pregnancy aches and pains in their second trimester.)  She may not start to show for another two months.  (Every woman is different, but many first-time mothers don’t start showing until week 20 or so (that was when I had to make the jump to proper maternity pants; a girlfriend who is very petite and tiny just told me she didn’t announce it until she was five months along as well).)  If she were quitting her job entirely a month would be generous notice.  So I don’t see any reason to start telling people until she starts to show — especially when a female supervisor is suggesting she wait.  I suppose there’s an argument that she could wait even longer — after all, there’s that old joke that you should never guess a woman is pregnant unless you actually see a baby coming out of her.  But I think, in general, that when you move to maternity pants is the right time to say something official to your boss. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Family Planning, Lifestyle, Motherhood, Pregnancy, Professionalism, Transitions

Back to School: Juggling A Full Time Job … and Courses

08/14/2012 By 47 Comments

College at Oxford, originally uploaded to Flickr by jimmyharris.How can you juggle a full time job with a part-time graduate school? Reader C wonders:

Not sure if you’ve covered this before, but could you do a post on balancing full-time jobs with part-time graduate school? Any tips on maintaining sanity/social life/health/relationships would be appreciated.

Congrats on going back to school! We’ve talked about how to adjust your budget for grad school, but we haven’t talked about the adjustments you need to make for your social life, health, and relationships. I have a few ideas, but I’m curious to hear what the readers say. (Pictured: College at Oxford, originally uploaded to Flickr by jimmyharris.)

- Know your priorities in life. Right now you’re juggling school and work — high priority family may be in the mix as well (a husband or partner, a sick family member, a child).  There are also all those other relationships — your friends, your dates, your acquaintances. Oh yeah: you may also want time for yourself. You really need to ask yourself what is most important to you and your goals in the long term. When conflicts come up, then you can refer back to the priorities list. [Read more...]

Filed Under: After-Work Activities, Career, Lifestyle, School, Transitions

What To Do When Your Mentor Hates You

06/14/2012 By 102 Comments

Originally uploaded to Flickr by TW Collins.What do you do when your assigned mentor is a bitch?  Reader C wonders…

I have a question about female competition in the workplace. I am a young legal assistant at a larger law firm and have had a string of disheartening interactions with a female coworker. Although she was assigned to be my mentor and we work together daily, this coworker has repeatedly refrained from telling me about social events and happy hours within our department, completed projects for clients to which I have been assigned (again, without telling me), given me incorrect information on project details and then denied it to our attorneys, cuts me off whenever we are presenting in a meeting to partners, etc. This started around the six month mark of my job. I have considered that it is simply her personality or that it is a product of female competition in the workplace. In either event, can you give me any tips or suggestions as to how to combat this? Unfortunately we work in a group and at a firm where any sort of confrontation is highly discouraged and knowing this girl she would deny away, but perhaps there is a less direct strategy I can use to handle this and discourage the behavior? Thank you!

Here’s the thing:  this person is not your “mentor.”  This woman may be the person HR is expecting to do some things, such as be a liaison between you and the higher office, or “help” you get your job off to a great start — but she isn’t an actual mentor.  I had something similar happen when I was at the law firm — my “mentor” kept calling me Kathy.  No matter how many times I corrected him, it persisted:  “Oh, hey, Kathy, let’s get lunch.”  Ugh.  I don’t think he meant me any ill will; I just don’t think he ever cared to learn my name or help me in any way. (Pictured: Originally uploaded to Flickr by TW Collins.) So what do you do?

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Etiquette, Career, CoWorker Problems, Professionalism, Transitions, Work Styles

What to Wear to a Company Picnic

06/07/2012 By 127 Comments

What do you wear to attend a company picnic and watch a baseball game — particularly when this will be one of the first impressions you make? Reader E wonders…

I finally have a unique fashion dilemma that I need help on. After working as a government attorney for several years, I have landed a job at a biglaw firm starting in the fall. I have been invited this summer to the firm’s trip to watch a baseball game and the picnic beforehand. It’s a family event to which SO’s and children are invited, and it’s on a Friday right after work. My dilemma–what to wear?? This will be the first time I meet many of the attorneys and support staff, so of course I want to make a good impression. Are jeans appropriate? Khakis? Do I need to wear team colors/jersey? Ack! (Also, I wouldn’t mind any tips on socializing at this type of event–I’ve never been to one and my SO can’t attend, so I’m really nervous about showing up alone and meeting people for the first time!) Thanks for any advice you have on this!

Ugh. I know firms think these things are fun, but the sartorial conundrum never is. Honestly, I would suggest calling the Hiring Department and asking them what people have worn to the event in the past. (In general, ladies, this is ALWAYS the right answer — call the HR department.) If they give you a vague answer (“oh, you know, pants or a dress”), I would ask what the men wear — if they’re still in suits from a day at the office (perhaps sans tie, or with shirt sleeves rolled up), I’d go for something more formal, like a sheath dress.  If they’re in shorts, polos, and sneakers (or team jerseys), welcome to Situation Casual — and perhaps consider jeans. [Read more...]

Filed Under: After-Work Activities, Business Casual, Business Etiquette, Internships/Summer Jobs, Networking, Professionalism, Transitions, Weather, What To Wear To...