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As someone new to the field, I certainly know that it can be very
intimidating to ask questions of colleagues who have been around a long
time. I think it wrong for someone to make a blanket statement regarding
your employment. Please do not think all writers are as callous as my
esteemed colleague, Matthew Horn, seems to appear. I apologize for his
behavior. Why can't we help each other???
Sonja Waller
Sr. Technical Writer
Smallworld Systems, Inc.
Communications Business Unit
TEL: 303.268-6163
FAX: 303.779-9945
Email:
sonja -dot- waller -at- smallworld-us -dot- com
-----Original Message-----
From: Steven Anderson [mailto:Steven -dot- Anderson -at- BRIGHTWARE -dot- COM]
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 1999 12:54 PM
To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
Subject: Re: Percentage raises at salary review time
Matthew Horn said:
First off, you say you "haven't received much negative feedback". I
would be
concerned if I received ANY negative feedback. Maybe you are lucky
to still
have a job.
What? You have never received negative feedback? Or every time you have,
you lost your job? My goodness! I'm not sure whether I'm envious of your
position, or happy that I don't work in that kind of environment.
Negative feedback is part of the process of creating new things or trying
new ways of completing a task. You come up with a different way to do
something, give it a shot, and get feedback, hopefully mostly "That's a
great idea!" but usually mixed with "Well, that's interesting" and "That's
garbage!" The person who gives you the negative feedback is usually your
best friend for getting the best results. You take that negative feedback,
learn from it, and improve what you are doing and your final product.
If all you ever hear is "That's great" then you can bet that people aren't
really paying attention to what you are doing. That's a great way to keep a
government job, but not a good way to advance in the business world.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand. In my experience here in the Bay Area,
because the job market is so tight, asking for a sizable salary increase is
normal. If you have companies that are willing to hire you for more than
you are receiving at your current job, then you should be asking for similar
amounts of money to stay. Instead of looking at a percentage, look at what
the job ads are offering for similar work. Then go for it! Ask for more
than you expect, you might get it.
