Life Lessons About Your Top Career Questions
Today’s post will be slightly different than normal. My IG followers ask some great questions so I’m sharing my responses and expanding on those here with you. Let's dive in!
How do you juggle a full-time, high-level administrative job, with such a time-intensive business?
First, I don’t juggle; I delegate. Juggling isn’t a good solution in the long term. In my job at a research institution, I manage a team of eight people. I hire very capable, very knowledgeable…you know, very smart people. I hire them to do their job and they do it. My job is to supervise them—to coach, train, and support them—but not to do their job for them and not to micromanage them.
For Mentor Me, I have hired a team. I have an executive assistant, a graphic designer, and a copy editor. I have a lawyer, a bookkeeper, and a tax accountant. Rarely are women doing it all. Often successful women have a lot of help. So I have a lot of help and I'm never shy about that.
I also outsource or find ways to get help in my personal life as well. Because I love to cook, I have a HelloFresh subscription. I know women who have help with their homes, raising children, and taking care of other areas of their lives. You don’t have to be rich to hire help or to outsource things.
Do you recommend negotiating salary when the offer is fair value?
You always negotiate. You should always be negotiating. Yeah, basically always negotiate; I don't care what they offer you. If somebody offered me $1,000,000 to do anything right now, I'd be like, you know, what I was really looking for is a million five, right? I suggest you always negotiate because it's not about fair value. It's about how much you desire to be paid at this stage in your career.
And if they come back with a no on salary negotiation, then they are more likely to accommodate travel, flexible schedule, or other aspects that would help your work-life balance.
What's a good way to ask your boss for a raise?
First reflect on your own value and the work that you've been doing within the organization over the last, let's just say, six months. Consider how that work is directly connected to the goals, vision, values, and desired outcomes of wherever you work. Then document that—just write it on a piece of paper or type it up in an email. You want to have clearly documented all the work you've been doing so you can directly tie it to organizational results.
Then you want to sort of think about the landscape of your organization. In most organizations, there's a mid-year review and an annual review. Let me be very clear—you can ask for a raise at any time. But if you have a review coming up, go ahead and use that time to your benefit. Typically this is a great setup for this type of discussion, but again, you can literally ask at any time.
Now that you have directly outlined your contributions and impact, you want to make the ask. Go to your boss or supervisor and ask for some sort of a meeting. My recommendation is to send an email that says something like, “Hey, [boss], I'd like to meet with you over the next two weeks for 30 minutes to talk about the outcomes I've been driving in this organization over the last six months. Specifically, I’d like to discuss an improved performance package that is better aligned with my skillset and contributions.”
So let her know you’re coming for a bag, then two days before the meeting, you send militia—this outline of your work from the last six months directly connected to the outcomes of the organization. The only way that you're going to get a raise is to clearly, confidently, and concisely speak to the problems that you're solving for her and the company.
What one support element keeps you organized and regulates your energy day-to-day in your career?
I'll be honest that my life doesn't work like that. It's not like, oh, I'm working right now and, oh, I'm doing my business right now. My life is a lot more integrated. I don't have set work hours or set business hours. There are times in my week that tend to be more focused on meeting with my students, and other times when I meet with my mentees.
I don't do anything that I'm not good at. I only focus on the things that I am already good at and outsource things that I need help with. I encourage women to do that in their careers. A lot of times we'd be like, ‘let me find my passion and purpose.’ Instead of that, I invite you to lean into the things that you are already good at.
I have heard that men don't hesitate when asking for an increase.
I think that's not true. Actually, what I've seen in the data is that women ask for raises just as often as men do. Women just aren't as respected in the workforce.
This is why it's important to have a career coach who's versed in contemporary career strategy. Women are asking for money; they're just not receiving it at the same rate as men because of sexism. But women are asking.
When women ask for money, they ask because daycare costs are rising or the price of gas is rising. That is not what I suggest. You ask for money based on your skillset. You ask for money based on the outcomes that you're driving and the problems that you're solving for the organization. Don't ask for money based on your personal circumstances.
Now that you see the sorts of questions I answer for other women just like you, I want to invite you on a call with me this week. 📲
I am ready to help you dive into all your career questions in greater detail. I want to come alongside you and help you get the job you want, the raise you deserve, and be able to articulate your skillset to get you these things.