Today’s job board detox tip: Research potential salary and compensation packages.
Whether or not you have a job offer in the bag or not, you must research ahead of time potential salary packages. You must get as prepared for this part of the hiring process as you do for the formal interviews. It is that critical.
Why is it critical? Because if you unprepared you could blow potential income and package opportunities. Say you get an offer and you are unprepared? What happens especially if you have given your salary range already?
Perhaps the offer is the same pay that you came from but less flexibility or the benefits are so-so. You must get prepared. Understand what you want, what you need - we all have to have a baseline of what we can live on. Taking even the best job in the world will not be satisfying if you are unable to pay your bills.
Quick tips to prepare yourself for this part of the hiring process.
Research. Know what the position you are looking at in the geographic area is paying. Check out what people are saying about that company and their compensation habits for employees. Glassdoor.com is great for this. Are they cheap or do they take good care of their employees.
Never discuss salary at the beginning of the process. Try your absolute hardest to not give a salary range. Here is a good line to use. “I am sure that the firm is paying within the market so I am sure their will be no issues. How about we continue to discuss how I can help your firm and we’ll take it from there?” This deflects the question and gets the interview focused off of salary, in a professional way.
Practice negotiating. This is a learned skill for most of us but is extremely necessary. Practice and read up on salary negotiation skills.
Lastly know what your must-haves or non-negotiables are. Know on what items you can bend and what you can’t. I had a client that took a large pay cut but was hired by a cutting edge firm in an area of the country he and his wife wished to move to. Plus he was given several opportunities to speak and be published. For the short term pay cut he will be receiving long term exposure and more than likely higher pay down the road.
Resource: Jack Chapman is an expert in this area. Visit his website here.
Job board detox salary image from Shutterstock
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There you are: sitting on the beach, covered in sunscreen, reading your favorite book, drinking your favorite drink under the cool shade of an umbrella. Life doesn't get any better than this. Suddenly, a door slams, a phone rings, a printer turns on. You jolt back into consciousness. You're at work, sitting in your cubicle, without even a hint of sunshine streaming in from outside.
When you're working a full-time job, finding time to enjoy the warm, bright summer weather can be a challenge. This is especially true for young professionals, as many of them are used to having summers off (or, at the very least, having a flexible summer schedule). But there's no need to feel trapped behind your cubicle walls. Go out and enjoy summer!
Here are a few tips for making the most of your summer while working full time.
1. Grab Some Foldable Chairs
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Keep a couple of foldable camping chairs at the office so you and a co-worker can catch some rays during lunch—whether it's in the park or the parking lot.
2. Keep A Beach Bag In Your Car
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Keep a bag full of summer supplies for your favorite summer activities. Having a bag (or, in my case, a backseat) full of towels, sunscreen, and swimwear keeps you prepared for anything. Friends hitting up the pool after work? You're covered. Once the clock strikes five, you can head to your destination of choice immediately.
3. Plan An Office Outing
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Plan an office field trip to the beach, the park, or the pool. Just do something fun so your brain can recharge and refresh!
4. Organize Group Walks
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Get a bunch of co-workers together and go on regular walks around town during lunch. (Or you could suggest a quick jaunt over to the ice cream shop.) This is a great way to get some fresh air, sunshine, and exercise.
5. Eat Lunch At The Park
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When you find yourself eating out, hit up places with a deck, porch, or patio of some sort. Obviously, eating out every day isn't really a feasible option for most of us, so look into alternative ideas as well. Pack a lunch and hit the park for your own little picnic.
6. Organize Office Sports
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Whether it's setting up an official office sports team or just hanging out with your colleagues a few times a week, playing sports is a great way to get out and enjoy the weather. Have a field nearby? Try setting up some slow-pitch softball games. Or see if you can get a basketball hoop for the office so you and a few co-workers can shoot some hoops at lunch.
7. Join A Professional Group
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During the summer, professional networking groups often have fun events like harbor cruises, pub crawls, and outdoor mixers. Find a professional group in your area and make networking fun this summer.
8. Have An Office BBQ
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Get your grill on! Talk to your boss about setting up an office BBQ. Ask everyone to contribute their favorite dish, side, or drink. Fire up the grill and relax! Hey, it's summer after all.
9. Wake Up Early
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Yes, yes, I know...waking up early is an incredibly painful and unbearable experience for some of us, but waking up even an hour earlier has its benefits—especially in the summer. Go for a morning run, putter around in the garden, or watch the sunrise with a loved one. Talk about starting the day off right!
10. Strategically Use Your Time Off
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Strategically use your vacation days around holidays. This way, you can make a potentially long weekend longer without having to use too much of your precious vacation time. Half days are also pretty awesome. It's amazing how much you can do with four extra hours! If you want an early weekend but don't want to burn up your vacation days too quickly, try taking a half day on a Friday instead of using a full day off.
11. Bike To Work
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If you're one of the lucky few who live within walking or biking distance of work, take advantage of it! Not only will you get plenty of fresh air, but you'll also save money on gas, which is always a plus!
There are plenty of easy ways to enjoy summer when you work a full-time job. So this summer, try out a few of these ideas and make the most of the sunshine and warm weather—while they're still around!
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