Get a 50% Pay Increase with These Five Tips

A little over two years ago, I was clearing $20 an hour and ready to leave my job. It wasn’t actually the pay that spurred me into talking with recruiters; it was, among a few other things, a terrible manager that lit a fire under my ass. There had been lukewarm interest from other recruiters, but no dice as of yet; I had attributed this to my not having two years of experience yet in my very early career.

But then in January of 2018, I got a new job offer for a 50% pay increase. Without having multiple years of experience on my resume. Seeing that $60,000 number on my offer letter (not including bonus) was a dream come true.

My first day at this new job came in early February, and my income’s only grown since then. Thinking back on it now, it’s what gave me the confidence to jump ship again to my current company. I was only at that job for 1.5 years, but making the switch was one of my Top 5 Best Life Decisions™. Here’s how you can follow in my footsteps and also get a 50% pay increase in one move.

1. Be underpaid to begin with

Lol, I’m so funny. Of course there’s a higher probability of higher pay if your current one pays peanuts. I was not being fairly compensated for the work I was doing, and the disorganized management never sought to rectify it. They were going to keep me at my pay level and title if I let them.

It’s funny looking back on it now. I would have been satisfied if I had a raise reflective of my managerial-levels of work being done; at the time, I thought a $50,000 salary (or a raise to $24 an hour) would be sufficient. If they had actually done this, I would’ve likely stayed for far longer and wouldn’t have hit a six-figure net worth yet. Ah, the irony.

Anyway, if your work far outpaces your compensation then your talents are better spent elsewhere. It also makes it easier to get a 50% pay increase from a statistical perspective.

2. Take 1 or 2 months to gain an in-demand skill

When I went to New Job for a 50% pay increase, I asked the recruiter what made me stand out. He responded that, besides wanting to work with me on finding a great role, it was my having an Inbound Marketing certification from HubSpot that sold my new boss on interviewing me. I still use the things I learned from that certification today; it’s an excellent tool for marketers out there (and a free one).

My current company also chose me thanks to my having a different skill many a marketer does not: HTML coding. This knowledge stemmed from high school, when I had a passing interest in website building and learned a little HTML. Turns out this new role at Current Company needed a marketer with HTML skills as that’s what they used to build their email communication. Score.

Note that I am not, nor was I ever, a master with either skill. Acquiring both skills took maybe a month to add to my wheelhouse. The certification is streamlined so you can earn it in less than a month. And there’s a secret to HTML code that’s served me well: most of my success is simply knowing what to copy/paste. My theory is most people are too intimidated by the world of coding to realize languages like HTML are actually really accessible. And take it from me, it pays you back in spades once you can add it to your skillset.

You don’t have to just take it from me, either.

Grant Sabatier from Millennial Money went from zero to a million dollars in a five year time frame, and he started the journey by taking a month to gain an in-demand skill. In his case it was learning Google AdSense and getting that certification; having it on his resume got him a $50,000 salary at a marketing agency, which ended his miserable unemployment stint. Getting that experience led him to open his own marketing agency, and the rest is history.

3. Know your market rate and demand better

Goodness gracious, you better be looking at this data. Set up a Glassdoor account and check out what the going market rates are for the high-paying roles you’re most interested in. Then compare that to the going market rate for your current job. If there’s a huge discrepancy, that’s a sign it’s time to up your pay requirements.

There are two ways to go about it in America’s economy: asking your current higher-ups for a fairer wage, or throwing them a deuces as you saunter somewhere new. Due to the penny-pinching nature of most payrolls, the second option the way to go for a 50% pay increase.

If you have a bizarre sense of loyalty to your employer, by all means talk with them about getting your fair share. But in my experience, that’s akin to pulling teeth. Their best-case scenario is to keep you locked into a lower salary; if it’s under market rate, they’re saving that much money on keeping you around instead of paying someone else who knows better.

At my second job, it’s why I had to argue with my boss for hours about higher pay. At my first job, it’s why they flat-out refused to negotiate with me in the first place. Because I demanded better than what they were willing to give, I left both of them for much greener pastures. If they can’t give you a fair wage, they don’t deserve you. Point blank.

4. Talk the talk on your LinkedIn profile

You already walk the walk in your current role, or you know you can walk the walk in a better one. Showcase your skillset and work ethic on LinkedIn so that superstar recruiter or hiring manager can find you more easily. It’s like making a profile on a dating site: you’re going to attract the best potential partners if you put in the extra effort writing out who you are and what makes you a great match.

Beyond networking your tail off and responding to endless job ads, LinkedIn is the primary way to connect you with the best of the best. Go through each part of your profile step by step and rework the language to attract your dream employers. That will also help you later on, when recruiters are calling you regularly to act as matchmakers. They’ll find you if you have a great profile, and before you know it you’ll be interviewing for exciting new roles that will offer you that 50% pay increase.

5. Do NOT tell them your current salary

There’s a ridiculous assumption that your current salary should be any kind of indicator for what your next job will pay. It’s also a very tricky road to navigate, because, despite what most online articles say, interviewers will still ask you point-blank what your salary is before making you an offer. Some states have banned the practice, but it’s hard to point out your potential employer is breaking the law. Even when I’ve tried to deflect the question or give a soft refusal (“I’d have to calculate how much my entire compensation package is,” blah blah blah) they’d counter with “That’s great, but seriously what’s your salary?” If anyone has a good way to answer these, please let me know because I’m a bit at a loss.

Instead I end up telling them it’s at “market rate,” and I’m looking for “market rate” for my next gig as well. Otherwise you risk going from a severely underpaid gig to simply one that’s underpaid. In both instances YOU ARE STILL UNDERPAID. Don’t do that to yourself. Avoid discussing your current salary like the plague.

Those are my biggest tips on getting a 50% pay increase in one fell swoop. How close are you to securing that bag today?