We often consider that for the effort we make and our degree of involvement, our salary is not enough. We also tend to compare ourselves with other colleagues, or with salaries from other companies to see how the job market is. All this, added to the fact that sometimes our level of expenses is higher than we expected, makes us need to reflect on our salary.
Do you really charge little?
Being objective about your salary is essential for your personal stability. When we think that the salary we are paid is below what we deserve, we fall into demotivation and discouragement, and this is very harmful for us, since we are the first to be harmed by this attitude.
Do a salary study for your professional category, talk to colleagues from other companies and ask them about their salary, look at offers on job search portals… It is important that you know "really" if your salary is enough. You also have to take into account that under the same conditions there are some multinational companies that pay even more than 20% more than other companies.
When your salary does not reach you
If the conclusion is that your salary is in line with the market and you still do not make ends meet, the problem is yours and not the company's. It would be unprofessional that because you do not have your expenses and income balanced, you lower your performance and you go grumbling through the corridors.
Open a sheet in Excel and write down all your fixed monthly expenses, and also your income. Study how much money is left each month for your extra expenses and adapt so that if you cannot save, at least you end the month with the same money in the account that you had on the last day of the previous month. And if there is nothing left for extra expenses, do not buy!
When your salary is 'objectively' low
If the conclusion is that your salary is really below the market, you cannot stay without doing anything, that would lower your self-esteem and your job satisfaction. Plan your promotion request taking into account your strengths, the circumstances of the company, and looking for the best moment as I said in my article "Would you like to know how to get a promotion at work?"
Sometimes we run into a wall of misunderstanding, with illiquid companies or companies that do not understand the importance of motivated staff. In those cases, we must assess the search for a new job in another company, making sure that there the salary will be in line with or higher than the labor market average.
It is important to know if our salary is within the margins of the labor market to assess if we are receiving the appropriate salary, or if on the contrary we need to ask for a salary increase. When after a 'well done' negotiation we are unable to match our salary to that of the market, we must assess whether to change companies. Other times the salary is in line with the market and you have to balance expenses and income.
“Only in dreams are we free. The rest of the time we need salaries ” Terry Pratchett
