Have you ever been taken advantage of during a salary negotiation? Have HR personnel ever tried to pin you down on a number early during the process? What if it is a dream job? The truth is, hiring managers are expecting you to negotiate. Learn how.

When developing the concept of SalaryScout, a site that allows users to anonymously exchange compensation data, I researched hundreds sources related to salary and salary negotiation. Rather than keeping these hidden away in my own personal bookmarks, I thought I would post them so that everyone can benefit. Enjoy!

• The Noel Smith-Wenkle Salary Negotiation Method (NMT.edu)
• Tips for Negotiating A Better Pay Package (CareerJournal)
• Sample Salary Questions and Answers (iSeek.org)
• IT Salary Negotiation Tips (eWeek)
• The New Salary Negotiation (AOL)
• 11 Commandments For Smart Negotiating (Worktree)
• The Fine Art of Salary Negotiation (iHispano)
• Salary Negotiation: The Art of the Deal (CareerBuilder)
• Salary Negotiation Tips (Pass to Canada)
• Salary Negotiation and Job Offer Tutorial (Quintcareers.com)
• Successful Job Offer Negotiation (CollegeGrad.com)
• How to Negotiate a Compensation Package (About.com)
• Top 10 Tips for Salary Negotiations (Monster.com)
• Show Me the Money: IT Salary Negotiation Tips (eWeek)
• 20 Salary Negotiation Tips (AskMen)
• Tips on Negotiating Salaries (Andrews.edu)
• Learn How to Negotiate a Higher Salary (EmploymentSpot)
• Salary Negotiation Advice (Wormen Work)
• Salary Negotiation is a Sticky Subject (eZinearticles.com)
• Keys to Effective Salary Negotiation (Christian Career Center)
• 10 Best Tips to Win Salary Negotiation (Job Street)
• Tooling Up: Salary Negotiation (ScienceMag)
• Salary.com’s Negotiation Clinic (Salary.com)
• Salary Negotiation (JobEmploymentGuide)
• Dos and Don’ts of Salary Negotiation (About.com)
• Salary Negotiation Online Tutorial (GetAhead Direct)
• Suggested tips for Negotiating a Salary (iSeek.org)
• The Principles of Salary Negotiation (Workopolis.com)
• Negotiating the Salary You Deserve (Mindtools)
• Interview & Salary Negotiation (cuny.edu)
• Salary Negotiation Q&A (Vault.com)
• Job Offer and Negotiation (WorkSmart)
• Salary Negotiation Guide (SusanIreland)
• Show Me the Money: Effective Salary Negotiation (Business Programs)
• Nine Key Negotiating Points (ScienceMag)
• Effective Salary Negotiation (Smart Pros)
• Winning at Salary Negotiation! (Black Career Zone)
• Stanford Salary Negotiation (Stanford)
• Top 10 Tips for Salary Negotiation (CBSalary)
• Negotiation Europe Salary Negotiations (Negotiation Europe)
• Salary Negotiation is a lot Like Monopoly (Careerhub.typepad.com)
• Job Offer Salary Negotiation (CV Tips)
• Salary Negotiation: The Art of the Deal (Resume Resource)
• Closing the Deal (Interview Stuff)
• Salary negotiation in the interview process (Devlicio.us)
• 4 Tips for Salary Negotiation (Penelope Trunk)
• Salary Negotiation Secrets That Work (Beyond.com)
• Salary Negotiation Secrets (Theladders.com)
• Monster.co.uk Salary Negotiation (MosterScotland.co.uk)
• The Art of Effective Salary Negotiation (TechTarget)
• Robert Half Salary Negotiation (Robert Half)
• What are the best ways to handle salary discussions? (CareerPerfect)
• The New Salary Negotiation (AOL)
• Is that your best offer? (JobSeerksAdvice)
• Salary Negotiation Skills and Strategies (1st Writer)
• S1 Jobs Salary Negotiation (S1 Jobs)
• Salary Negotiation: The Art of the deal (AJC Jobs)
• The Four-Step Salary Negotiation Method (Five-o-Clock Club)
• 7 Nifty Salary Negotiation Tips To Get A Pay Raise (mftrou.com)
• Successful Salary Negotiations (SC.edu)
• Disclosing Salary Requirements and Salary History (About.com)
• Starting Salary (Guardian.co.uk)
• 30 Salary Negotiation Mistakes to Avoid! (OU.edu)

After looking at many of these, I came to the conclusion that there probably isn’t a single best way to conduct negotiations. It depends a lot on the job and the person you are negotiating with. Many of these are good, however, others aren’t so good. Regardless, I think this list is a great starting point for learning how to negotiate. Don’t forget to signup at SalaryScout and find out how much others are making.

I’m a procrastinator. There, I’ve said it. I also have perfectionist tendencies. As you might imagine, this can sometimes be a lethal combination. Not only do I “wait until the last minute”, but I’m never satisfied with the outcome. I’m sure you’re asking, “how do you get anything done?”

Several years ago I recognized that this was an area of my life that needed improvement. Although I’m still reluctant get started on tasks too early, I have made much progress in determining the optimum time to work on a project. Completing work weeks or days ahead of schedule is often not desirable and may result in work having to be re-done. However, waiting until the night before a major deadline, no matter how small the task, can lead to unnecessary elevated stress. Depending on the scope of the project, the optimum time to start a project is a few days or weeks before your most conservative projection.

Those of us plagued with perfectionism have a tendency to never be satisfied. While this can be valuable at times, more often than not it leads to major delays and missed deadlines. To address this problem, I consciously try to set attainable goals, be pragmatic, and realize that a completed product/project/or task is much more important than perfection. Perfection can only be achieved when a project is refined over time. It is unrealistic to believe that perfection can be accurately defined during a project’s inception.

Before anything, I want point of that I am not expert in this area. I am a person with more interests than time and continually look to take on new projects and responsibility. Rather than get bogged down, I decided to approach the problem directly and find ways to increase my work efficiency. I offer no guarantees and can not really take credit for any of it. The tips given below are simply an explanation of what has worked for me.

Write down what needs to be accomplished

As soon as you recognize that a certain task that needs to be completed, write it down. Otherwise, additional time and concentration (another resource) will be wasted thinking about all of the things that need to be done, rather than actually doing work. By keeping a list of tasks to be accomplished, you can keep yourself from being overwhelmed by seeing that that the amount of work to be done is finite.

Break tasks down into the smallest unit possible

It’s not enough to write down broad project descriptions. e.g. ‘Complete Web Project’ Tasks should be broken down into the smallest unit possible. This will ensure that whether you have 5 days, 5 hours, or 5 minutes to work on a project, something with be accomplished. Any time you sit down to work, the mantra should be, ‘complete at least one task, complete at least one task, complete at least one task…’

Prepare your environment for productivity

Determine the environmental requirements for you to be most productive. For me, it’s a clear desk, up-tempo music without words (typically electronica, techno, traditional Irish, bluegrass, jazz), a steaming cup of tea (yes, I put milk in my tea), and dark outside (after 9:00pm) with the window open. After years of telecommuting, I realized that I seem to get the most accomplished when all of these variables fall in place. Find what works for you and recreate that environment time and time again.

Start with the quickest/easiest tasks first

We all love the sense of accomplishment. Projects often fall behind due to frustration and lack of initiative/excitement. When possible, complete the quickest/easiest tasks first. In order to maintain the motivation required to see a project through to completion, the ability to show steady progress is key. In certain circumstances completing smaller tasks first may not be possible. However, it is important to maintain the sense that the project is not stagnant.

Set small, medium, and long term goals

If you don’t know exactly what you want to accomplish, you’ll waste a lot of time in the process. Set attainable small, medium, and long term goals for all projects. For example:

Small goal:
I will create three images before I make a cup of tea.

Medium goal:
I will have the template completed before I go to bed next Sunday night.

Long term goal:
I will have this web-application completed in 3 months.

Long term goals encompass the entire scope of the project. Medium goals are for the major sections of the project, and small goals are groups of tasks that can be completed in a very short period of time. For me, setting goals is usually not enough. I always reward myself for accomplishing each goal. As noted above, after I create three images, I’ll go make a cup of tea. Other rewards may be eating a snack, taking a break, putting on music, turning on the fan, checking Google news, etc. Typically a small goal consists of multiple tasks and takes around 30 minutes to complete.

Medium and long term goals require accountability. Once you have established medium and long term goals, tell as many people about your deadline as you can. Doing this provides extra pressure to ensure that goals are achieved on time. Be sure not to be overly optimistic when setting goals. Tasks always take longer than expected.

Only work on one task a time

In the age of multitasking, it seems counterintuitive to focus on one task at a time. All I have to say, it works! Rather than chatting on your instant messaging client, refreshing Google news for the 100^th time of the day, pulling up your RSS reader, listening to a podcast, and working on several tasks of your project all at the same time, work to discover the value of pure concentration.

I have found that focusing on tasks sequentially rather than in parallel is much more effective. While I have difficulty focusing intensely for a long period (the Internet is too distracting) of time, I have found that I can regularly do it for periods of 5 minutes. This goes hand in hand with breaking down tasks to the smallest unit possible. When each task has been completed, physically mark it off the list so that you feel the sense of accomplishment and can visually see progress.

End Notes

By knowing what needs to be accomplished, breaking tasks down into manageable pieces, setting goals, rewarding yourself, and focusing on one task at a time, you’ll be surprised of what can be accomplished. Although these tips can be helpful, often the greatest road block is lack of commitment to change. If you truly want to improve work efficiency, don’t just think about it, make it happen.

Several weeks ago Kiplinger posted a funny but true article titled “What Not to Say at a Job Interview.” Having a solid resume is only part of the equation. Job seekers often eliminate themselves by making mistakes during interviews.

This Kiplinger article points out some of the more common mistakes that can lead to a bad interview. To sum it up, look good, be prepared, be focused, and be real. Oh by the way, don’t discuss salary until you’ve been offered the job.

Honestly, I didn’t quite know what to expect. The response has been simply amazing. As with most user-generated-content sites, SalaryScout provides little to no value without users. (cliche chicken and egg problem) Well, the users have spoken!

My initial fear was that people would be quick to criticize SalaryScout before it is populated with enough users. It appears that most users have been pretty understanding and realize that SalaryScout has a lot of potential for growth.

I just wanted to send out a thank you to everyone who jumped on board early. I have a lot of ideas brewing, so expect enhancements in the near term. SalaryScout is a living and breathing beta.

If you haven’t already told your friends or blogged about SalaryScout, now’s the time. The success and value of this site is directly related to your participation.

I’m extremely happy and a bit nervous to announce the public beta release of SalaryScout.com. No worries, right? Actually, most web launches are dismally small. Usually a combination of excitement, adrenaline, caffeine, and large egos cause most founders to be over optimistic. “We have the next biggest, baddest, greatest product/service ever!” Don’t worry, you won’t be subject to that sort of unearned confidence here. I live and work by the philosophy, “under promise and over deliver.”

Expect bugs. Expect a limited feature set. SalaryScout was created during nights and weekends over roughly 30 days. I don’t consider myself a programmer or designer. Although I enjoy those activities, SalaryScout was started as a personal challenge just to see what could be accomplished.

Rather than continue to refine and build additional features, I felt it was time to invite the public (you) to participate. Please keep in mind and understand that the initial data set is limited. SalaryScout will only grow with your participation and support.

Initial Features:

• Ability to rate and comment on salary profiles
• Basic search by title, description, country, and region
• User customized RSS feeds based on search results
• Multiple country and region support
• Mulitple currency and currency formatting support
• Community-based quality control

Additional Information:

Read the story behind SalaryScout:
http://www.salaryscout.com/blog/about

Read the SalaryScout FAQ:
http://www.salaryscout.com/blog/faq

Submit comments and questions to:
info ]at[ salaryscout.com

Once again, thank you for your interest in SalaryScout. If you have comments, questions, or bug reports, don’t hesitate to send them my way. Good luck in your negotiations!

It’s never possible to be too prepared for an interview. One of the best ways of preparing is to read and consider as many interview questions as possible. That way, you will not be surprised if any particular interview question is asked. You can find 50 interview questions here. It’s also important to remember that being ready to answer questions is only half of the process. Be prepared to ask questions! Interviews can be long, have at least 10 questions prepared.

There are many reasons why people decide to find other employment. After basic needs are met, happiness becomes a primary concern. A recent blog entry mentioned that the top 5 reasons for quitting include money, not being challenged, being too challenged, the company is dead, and cumbersome processes/BS.

“It’s like clockwork. Every year a portion of our top talent decides it’s time to move on. Once those bonus or holiday checks are cashed, the flood gates open and the resignation letters start flowing in.”

One of the major reasons I believe top employees quit is because most of them know exactly what they want. If the company can’t provide it, they are looking elsewhere. Certain employees are considered ‘top’ because of their ability to execute. If the company does not provide a clear road to move forward, employees often take the first exit.

Northwest Flordia Daily News has an interesting article on getting the most pay out of your job. “A lot of people assume that more pay can come only from winning a promotion, or finding a new job elsewhere. But there are ways, large and small, to put more money in your pocket each week. Separately, these strategies may not be enough to change your life. But put several together, and they start adding up.“

Here is an old article (1983) reprinted from FOCUS magazine listing the 25 most difficult interview questions. While the title says, ‘most difficult’, I think a more realistic title is, ‘The 25 Most Common Interview Questions.’ e.g. All of us have been asked, ‘tell me about yourself.’ How difficult can that be? Even though this article is old, and the title is a bit misleading, I think you’ll find it valuable.

“If you are one of those executive types unhappy at your present post and embarking on a New Year’s resolution to find a new one, here’s a helping hand. The job interview is considered to be the most critical aspect of every expedition that brings you face-to- face with the future boss. One must prepare for it with the same tenacity and quickness as one does for a fencing tournament or a chess match.”