Asking for a raise in any industry is always tricky. When planning on asking for a raise from your boss, the number one thing to do is be prepared for the conversation. Extensively outline your talking points and fill them with good examples of why you deserve a raise. This article will talk about some tactics you can implement in your professional life to ensure that you are in an advantageous position to ask and potentially receive a raise.

Taking on Responsibility

The old adage goes: dress for the job you want, not the job you have. Although this tactic doesn’t highlight your dress in the work environment, you can think about it as taking on responsibility for the job you want. Excelling at your current job position is crucial for putting yourself in a good place to ask for a raise. If you have mastered your own job responsibilities, you can start to look for opportunities that would have you completing tasks similar to the ones you would be performing if you were to receive a raise. This would show your boss that you are a hard worker as well as give yourself a leg up by already being familiar with some of the new job duties and responsibilities.

Timing

When asking for a raise, timing is everything. Understanding the company you work for could help you learn when a good time to ask for a raise is and what the likelihood of receiving that raise would be. If your company gives quarterly reviews to employees, that could potentially be a good time to ask or hint at a raise based on your job performance. Knowing when a company’s fiscal year is, is also a valuable piece of information to have when asking for a raise. Try to match your request along the same lines as the company’s fiscal year or one of your quarterly reviews.

Conversation

You should always be very prepared with examples and facts when going into a conversation about a potential raise for yourself. A similarly important aspect of that is going into the conversation with confidence and enthusiasm. The way you present the examples and facts of your work is arguably just as important as the examples themselves. Go into the conversation with an upbeat and positive attitude about the new position or raise. Confidence and enthusiasm are two ways you can help your superior feel comfortable about giving you a well-deserved raise.