Have you ever asked for a raise?

A friend of mine recently did… and it worked! I admit, I was kind of amazed. I’ve never been in the position where I’ve felt like I had to ask for a raise—meaning, my contributions weren’t being sufficiently compensated. However, my girlfriend was, in a big way.

Over the past year, she’d almost doubled her work load, and taken on the responsibilities and projects of people the next title “up” at her organization. During this time, her work had been praised and recognized by managers above her. Yet, when it came time to start writing reviews, her boss had not mentioned anything about a promotion to her. She decided to take matters into her own hands.

In preparation of her review, she summarized all of her day-to-day and longer-term job responsibilities. She also printed out copies of her current job description and that of the job one step above her. She researched salaries standard in her industry across different companies as well. When she came to sit down with her boss, she was prepared.

My friend was easily able to show that she was working beyond her current pay grade and worthy of not only a promotion in title, but a raise in monetary compensation. She told me her boss was kind of taken aback, but promised to discuss it with his boss as the review process moved forward.

A few weeks later, when bonuses and new salaries were to be communicated, her boss summoned her into his office to tell her that she had both gotten a new title and a raise!

While having this conversation definitely takes guts, it also takes planning and perseverance. You can’t just walk in and say you want more money, even if it’s obvious to you that you deserve it. You have to do your due diligence and find the facts that prove what you’re worth. Doing that made all the difference for my friend, and her financial situation… not to mention self-esteem!