How to Negotiate Salary for Your Next Career Move

Posted by Bendigo Resume on 19 Jan 2026

A salary negotiation is an arduous process because it involves balancing what you believe you’re worth with what the employer thinks they’ll be able to afford. If done properly it can be a positive experience for both parties that results in a higher salary for the employee and greater engagement of the employee in their job. Here’s how you can bargain your salary in confidence.

Important Takeaways

  • Before you make a salary offer take a look at market rates and industry standards to ensure your salary request is realistic.
  • Collect information through networking with colleagues, using websites like LinkedIn Salary and Glassdoor, and contacting professional networks.
  • Create talking points ahead of time, including education and certifications, years of relevant experience, the results and achievements and unique skills abilities, industry expertise, and training opportunities.
  • During negotiations, be assertive and confident, yet flexible and open-minded. You should highlight tangible results you’ve achieved in your previous positions.
  • Maintain a positive mood throughout the conversation, and engage in active listening.

Do your research

Before entering into any pay negotiation, it’s crucial to conduct thorough research on market rates and industry standards to ensure that your salary request is realistic. Things that may affect this may include levels of experience levels, the size of your company as well as location. (?). One way to gather information is to make connections with colleagues or others within your job field.

Research Online

With the help of online sources, like [LinkedIn Salarywith the help of certain online resources such as [LinkedIn Salary] (https: //www. linkedin. com/salary) and [GlassdoorGlassdoor (https: //www. glassdoor. com/Salaries/index. Htm) you can obtain a an additional perspective on the salary range that benchmarking businesses pay for the same job. This gives you an idea of the market rate plus few other aspects related to an employment.

Your Network Is Essential

Learn more by talking to colleagues who have been in similar roles or reaching out via professional networks as well doing brainstorming members within professional organizations.

Plan Talking points

Preparing for a negotiation is always well spent. You’ll be more confident in the presentation of your case if have a clearly defined outline of your talking points before the deadline.

Here are some instances of what you may want to consider to include in your salary negotiation:

  • Education and certification
  • Experience gained through years of relevant work
  • Results and achievements
  • 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 assist during conversations to ensure that you don’t miss any important information.

Be confident & concise

During a salary negotiation it’s crucial to appear confident and clear. Speak clearly about your experiences accomplishments, your job goals and achievements. It is important to keep your tone of voice positive throughout the discussion so that the employer doesn’t feel like you’re being hostile.

Highlight the tangible results

Simply stating one is determined, hardworking and aspire-driven person may not be enough to make an appealing appeal. So put forward clear statistics about how your previous positions made a significant difference to companies or what are the most valuable qualities which benefit organisation

Remain flexible

If your employer isn’t able to agree to your requested salary or compensation package being flexible and open will help open the door to dialog. You could ask about alternative incentives like performance-based bonus structures, instead of the Base salary(? ).

You must remain professional throughout the negotiation process regardless of how well or not: Being too aggressive or imposing unreasonable demands can lead to a negative outcome for everyone affected.

Practice active listening

Listening is as crucial as communicating during these kinds of conversations. Listen attentively from the other party during negotiations hearing specific requests and resolving doubts as much as you can while keeping to the initial request. The goal is to achieve satisfactory results.

Consider the lessons you’ve learned away from these conversations and incorporate it into the next negotiations that you’re likely to be involved in. The tips mentioned above will go a long way towards maximizing the chance of achieving positive, mutually beneficial results.

Your Network is Important Contact friends and acquaintances who have held similar roles or reach out via networking networks for professionals as well as brainstorming members of professional associations.
Prepare talking points Education & certification, Years of relevant experience, Results and achievements, unique ability and traits (e.g. multilingualism) Know-how in the field, Training potential
Be confident & concise Be clear about your experience, achievements and job expectations. Use tangible results to highlight your achievements.
Stay flexible You can inquire about alternative incentives such as bonuses based on performance instead of Base salary. (?). You must remain professional throughout the negotiation process.
Practice active listening Listening is just as important as communicating in these kinds of conversations. You can take the lessons you’ve learned away from these conversations and incorporate it into any future conversations you’ll probably be involved in.


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Frequently Asked Questions

What is salary negotiation?

Negotiating salary is discussing and deciding on the compensation plan to be paid for your job. Through this process, you can discuss not just your salary base, but also additional benefits such as retirement plans, health insurance and many more.

Why why is it important to discuss salary?

Negotiating your pay can provide you a greater financial future as well as show that you know your worth. It will also allow you to avoid leaving money on the table.

When should I start negotiating my salary?

It is recommended to begin negotiations following the acceptance of an offer to ensure everyone is informed of what’s being negotiated. In this way, negotiations are focused on securing the best terms, while avoiding any surprise.

What if I am happy with the package I was offered without negotiating?

If you receive an offer and are pleased with it, then there’s no need to negotiate. However, it’s essential to communicate clearly what employers will provide in terms of things like compensation for training or performance-based bonuses.

What is the best way to negotiate my salary? switching careers completely?

Salary negotiation when changing careers may require more preparation due to the fact that your previous experience might not directly translate or be a part of the new job. Find out what similar jobs in similar industries pay to gain a robust idea of what realistic expectations are for you, considering the specific circumstances.

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