First things first: introversion and shyness are not the same thing, although they sometimes occur in the same person. A true introvert, regardless of whether or not they’re also somewhat bashful, is a person who draws energy from being alone and expends it by being with others. For obvious reasons, this makes some aspects of professional life somewhat difficult — for example, it’s hard to negotiate salary, when even everyday social interactions make you feel like you’re running low on gas.
However, it’s totally possible to get what you deserve, salary-wise, even if you’d prefer to spend your workdays actually working, instead of having possibly confrontational conversations with management. Data gathered for PayScale’s Salary Negotiation Guide shows that 75 percent of people who ask for more money get some kind of raise. The odds are in your favor. The key is to use your strengths:
- Research and prepare.
Salary negotiations are not the time to wing it, even for extroverts. No matter how charming you are at parties, meetings like these require preparation. Fortunately, as an introvert, you probably aren’t tempted to coast on social graces.
Instead, preparation is probably more your speed, thanks to your ability to focus and your self-starting nature. That comes in handy when you’re going into a conversation that’s a little more complicated that the usual office chitchat. (And if you’re looking for resources, PayScale’s free Salary Survey will generate a salary report that can help you set an appropriate range for your request.)
- Keep it one-on-one.
Your manager might be the social butterfly of the organization, but that doesn’t mean that he or she wants to be surprised with a request for a raise. Because you may feel drained by social interactions, you’re more likely to feel comfortable setting up a one-on-one meeting with your manager — a situation that will benefit you both by allowing you to concentrate on the topic at hand.
- Don’t be afraid to be quiet.
Sometimes, the best thing to say is nothing at all. People who chatter away when they’re nervous run the risk of looking as anxious as they feel … or like they’ll be easy to persuade to take a lower number than their range. If you’re comfortable being quiet, embrace that. Let your manager do more of the talking, and you might find yourself coming out with more than you bargained for. At the very least, you won’t get in your own way.
Tell Us What You Think
What are your go-to negotiation tips? We want to hear from you. Tell us your thoughts in the comments or join the conversation on Twitter.
I have followed this process very recently and came out with more than I wanted, so very happy. If you work hard your boss will want to keep you. I basically quietly stated that I required a certain minimum amount per hour to support my family, and let them work it out. I didn’t explain how I reached the figure. Long story short $6000 raise, no extra responsibilities.
In my experience, when it comes to introverts most managers undermine the research (claiming it doesn’t apply for some reason or another), and/or find any excuse to delay, delay, delay until the introvert gives up.
My follow up negotiation techniques come from this group of people who did a brief discussion on salary negotiation. It was a video clip of some people on the news, and this clip is available on youtube. I also watched and took notes on a video by Ramit Sethi. This has helped a little, but I know I need to be more mentally aggressive to get to my goals.
When are we going to start reading about extroverts…you know, those jerks who always bring up the topic of introverts?