My senior negotiated for a raise and it worked

July 26, 2008 · Filed Under General · 1 Comment 

I work in a University. The job is good and I enjoy its benefits and the great salary. But when its time for a raise, we have to negotiate for it and put across the board since the university is funded by the state. The raise is not tied to any performance whatsoever. I have accepted it until I saw my senior negotiating for the raise by himself.

The first step that my senior took was that he had to challenge the whole system. He found that there was a title change in the university that had a higher compensation range. He did a careful planning before bringing up the subject of the pay during his performance review. He showed examples of his strength, cited highly successful projects in which he had been involved and illustrated his value in front of the board members.

While negotiating for the raise, he was careful of few things which he didn’t want to show in front of others because it could have hurt his chances of getting the raise.

He didn’t show up his cost of living because everyone has similar situations/problems. And therefore, everyone cannot get the raise.

He didn’t show the number of years that he worked in this university, so he is entitled to it.

He didn’t compare his work with others, because he was presenting his individual picture.

He can make a higher amount if he goes to some other place.

After a thoughtful review of his negotiating capabilities, the board members agreed with his self assessment and suggested for a title change. He was going through a tight budget and realized that there is no other way to get the increase in pay. My senior had done good research ahead of time and he knew that it was a nice opportunity to accept the proposal.

My senior found out that his promotion will be granted for the 2008 fiscal year. From next year onwards, he is going to get the negotiated raise and his increased salary due to the title change.

I learnt a good lesson: it’s always good to know the system of your place of employment before meeting your boss for the raise. It’s wrong to assume that the system is the same everywhere. My senior did a careful planning before challenging the whole system rather than asking for something that can’t be always granted.

Performance is the key factor. It’s important to show your capabilities with specific examples. Everyone in the job shows their performance but you have to do something exceptionally good to stand out. Your individual value should have the impact on the growth of the business. Your chances of negotiation will be better if you keep away the “negative reasons” of entitlement, comparison, or personal needs.

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Keep your good credit ratings

July 12, 2008 · Filed Under Credit, Credit Score · Comment 

There are a number of organizations that are rapidly growing up and provide services like debt consolidation, debt settlement and offer education on related topics. Their mission is to educate and assist people overwhelmed by their existing debts and finding out ways and resources to come out of their existing problems.

A good and reputed organization offering debt consolidation or debt settlement programs will have the following core values for their customers. These include honesty, leadership, love, intelligence, responsibility, fun, health, empathy, success, and gratefulness. One of such companies that set values is federal debt relief system. They help the consumers by terminating their debts completely. The programs that they offer you will terminate your debts after a certain period of time and you will be able to breathe free in the air. You will be on your way to regain your credit worthiness after repaying your existing debts.

The first step to get started and become debt free is to fill up the application form on the website and request for a free quote. You might have to answer a few questions on the website to determine whether you qualify in any of the programs offered by the debt consolidation/debt settlement company.

There are many organizations that will offer you some budgeting sessions while they are walking you towards a debt free life. They will educate you with the best ways to use your credit card and stay out of debts. They have experts who will offer you the counseling anytime during the program. If you have any difficulties in tailoring your budgets, you know there is professional help at an arm’s length or just a phone call away. These experts will analyze how much your monthly income and expenses are and figure out how much you can save in the program after settling your existing debts. They will show you the calculations and if you follow their suggestions, you will never be in debts again. While you are using your credit cards, make sure that you do not go over your spending limits. You have to keep your debt to income ratio low as much as possible so that you are able to save more for a better and healthy life.

If you are taking the precautions of staying with your spending limits and finding all sources of income and taking care of your existing debts, you should be able to see your credit improving and protecting your financial future. It is very important to have very good credit scores so that you are able to shop for new credit with different potential lenders and get the most competitive interest rates.

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Importance of Personal finance

July 2, 2008 · Filed Under Personal Finance · Comment 

Personal finance and its management came into effect when the money could be exchanged for goods and services besides fulfilling the other basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter. People need a job to make a living and get compensated in cash. The concept of personal finance and its management came into effect when human wants increased in exchange of resources. Everyone wants to live comfortably and have all the basic amenities in life. Next important thing that a person needed to maintain is a check book, and avoid getting into debt. With the easy availability of new credit for the individuals, it has become literally mandatory to become skilled in making the right decisions for a better life.

The best way of managing money starts from childhood when a child start getting pocket money at a young age. As he grows up, he starts learning the ability to plan and budget his money. Budgeting and planning your expenses, investing for the future requirements and retirement planning broadly covers the different aspects of personal finance.

Budgeting plays a vital role in keeping your personal finance in good shape. No matter how much you earn, it’s very important that you have a perfect control over your spending habits and it is well within your income. There are so many people who can live quite a comfortable life even if they have a modest income. If you try to spend more than your income, the debt to income ratio will keep rising and it will be tough to catch up. Once you have a perfect control over your income and expenses, and create a little savings, you will know how much you have available to invest for your future. Experts say that you should keep at least half of your yearly income invested so that you can use this fund during an unexpected emergency. Create realistic plans is a big help in your budgeting while you are aware of the difference between wants and needs.

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