Find Your Fit: A Practical Guide to Landing a Job You'll Love

11

Negotiating Your Job Offer

Alan De Back

Early in my adult life I needed to buy a new car. My first car, which my dad had helped me purchase several years before, was soon to be headed to the junkyard. I went to the dealership filled with confidence that I would negotiate the best deal possible. Several hours later I left with a new car, but feeling as if I had “lost the fight.” I was convinced I had paid far more than I should have, but somehow still ended up paying the price and driving away. I chastised myself every time I drove that car until the day I sold it. What had happened?

Now let’s fast forward to the time I found and accepted my first corporate sector job. My previous professional experience had been in the nonprofit and government ...