Discussing salary while interviewing

The job search process is tough and intense. Not only should you research the role you’re interviewing for, but you should also prepare to negotiate a salary you can rightfully defend. Keep in mind that those who chose to negotiate salary, rather than accepting the offer on the table, increased their starting pay by an average of $5,000. Crazy, right?

Well I read this article, Setting Up & Preparing For Interviews by Taylor Poindexter the Engineering Manager at Spotify, and the first tip for setting up your interviews really struck a cord as I’ve always struggled with addressing it; How to say no to saying your desired salary by a company when it’s interviewing you.

It got me curious. What are the ‘right’ words to use when saying no and switching the conversation to them giving you a range. As a Community-bred designer I went to my most reliable source of information, people in the slack groups I am in sharing their personal experiences, and shared this question to get different perspective on tackling the issue:

I am happy to say that I am never disappointed by the kindness you sometimes find in these communities. Community members poured in their advice. Hope the responses will help you in future:

Originally published at https://www.lewisngugi.com on December 12, 2021.