Hi Jennifer!

I agree it can be very hard to guess what answer to give when put on the spot early on in the interview process. You don’t yet know all of the job duties and responsibilities, the level of experience they are really needing, and what the competitive salary range may be. It seems like they want you to read their mind, and they will drop you through a trap door if you guess wrong. They want you to play “The Goldilocks Game”.

When they ask your salary expectations, there are three possible answers you might give: One answer is Too Big, one is Too Small, and one is Just Right. The sad thing is, ALL THREE answers mean you lose the game. Here is why:

If you give an answer that is above their planned budget for the job, they may easily decide that you are out of their range and drop you from consideration right then. The sad truth is, they might have still been willing to pay that much if they found out what extra value you could bring them.

Think back to the last time you bought a car, a TV, a major appliance, or some other expensive item. You probably had some original amount in mind to spend. However, once you compared models, talked to sales people, and learned about some sexy features you had not originally considered, you may have spent a little more than your original budget. Why? Because in the process of evaluating your choices, you learned what additional value that model had that could justify the extra expense.

The same thing can happen with you, but only if the employer gets far enough in the interview process to discover what extra value you have to offer them. Give them that chance.

The obvious problem with asking for too little is that you might just get it! However, there is a more insidious problem. Think again to your shopping experiences. When you see a floor or demo model on sale for a greatly reduced price, are you eager to make that purchase? Or do you worry about where the hidden scratch, dent, or flaw might be?

Employers think the same way. If you ask for less than they originally thought you were worth, they are likely to wonder “What’s wrong? Where’s the flaw?”, and start asking more difficult, probing questions to uncover the reasons.

Even if you manage to guess a number in their budget range, you still lose “The Goldilocks Game”. Why? Because at that point you have given away any future power to negotiate. You have already promised them how much you will accept for the job.

Later in the interview process, you might find out that the job will require much more time and effort than you originally thought. They might learn of the extra value you bring to them, value that they would be willing to pay extra for (see “Too Large” above). But you have now locked yourself in to accept an offer at the amount you named.

So, how do you win “The Goldilocks Game”? Simple – You don’t play. In any negotiation, the first rule is “He who names the first number loses.” So, you don’t want to name a number, but instead you want them to name theirs. This is often much easier than you think, if you can get comfortable delivering an answer that deflects the question and lobs it back at them. Your response could sound something like:

“Salary is important, but not the most important thing on my list. I’d rather learn the scope and responsibilities of the position first, and then we can decide what is a fair compensation.”
or…
“I’d rather not set a number until I’ve completed my research on this position’s compensation range.”
or…
“I made a fair amount in my last job. However, I don’t believe my past salary in a very different role is relevant to what would be a fair compensation for this position.”

Then you follow that response immediately with “Did you have a range in mind for this position?”

You may be surprised to discover that this approach works MOST of the time. That is because, early in the screening process, the interviewer’s primary goal is to ascertain if you are in the same ball park when it comes to compensation. If they can verify that by giving you a number that you agree is “in the ball park”, they have still accomplished their goal, but you haven’t given away any of your negotiating power.

By deflecting the salary expectation back at the interviewer, many of my clients have discovered that a company they were interviewing with was willing to pay much more than they expected. And Jennifer, you too just might get more than you expect, if you can learn NOT to play the Goldilocks Game. Good luck!

Job Coach Jeff