How to Shrink the Gender Pay Gap
On this episode of Martinis and Your Money, I’m bringing back on my Financial Gym teammate and salary negotiation expert Allegra to talk more about negotiating. At the gym we are constantly working with clients to optimize their financial picture. One half of the work is around their expenses and making sure they’re spending appropriately for their goals, but the second half is on making more money. The easiest way you can make more money is negotiating for it – whether through a new job or in your existing job. Allegra and I are going to talk about some best practices and share some really powerful stories to help motivate and inspire you to negotiate for more. Cheers!And if you need help with negotiating and finding ways to make more money, reach out to my team at the Financial Gym. You can schedule a free call, and possibly even chat with Allegra, to find out more. No matter where you are, my financial trainers can help you get where you want to go. Head over to or send friends to financialgym.com/friends to sign up today!
What are we drinking?
Allegra — Water and a coffee
Shannon — Coffee with cinnamon and a club soda
Podcast Notes
This is Allegra’s second time on the podcast – listen to her first episode here!
Allegra is the Financial Gym’s in-house negotiation counselor for clients.
She says if you’ve been given a job offer and that company has already spent time and money and effort deciding that you are the right person, you are in the position to leverage that.
Shannon and Allegra both express how important it is to know your worth!
Allegra shares her friend Jay’s story.
Jay knew she wanted to make more and started looking for jobs outside of her company.
There was potential to move up in her current company but she decided not to wait and began looking up.
She was offered a job and then immediately began negotiating her salary.
The recruiter initially offered her a base salary of $85,000, and she countered with $95,000.
They ultimately agreed on a $90k base salary with a $5k sign-on bonus and other bonuses throughout the year.
Allegra and Shannon talk about how nervous Jay was to negotiate her pay especially because she was asking for more than what she was making at her previous job.
Don’t let anyone make you feel like what they initially offer you is what you deserve to make.
Shannon and Allegra agree that there is no shame in switching positions or even jobs to make more money.
Don’t stay complacent with where you are because you are scared of change!
Allegra lays out the steps you need to take if you decide to stay at your current company but want to make more money:
Figure out your numbers
Schedule an in-person salary-focused meeting
Try to meet with your boss or senior person involved in decision making – it may not be the person you are more comfortable with and that’s okay
Don’t provide too much detail for what the meeting is about
Be open, honest, and direct to accomplish your goal for the meeting
Have confidence!
Describe the value you are providing to the company
Just because you found the salary range for your position doesn’t mean you need to discuss that range
Allegra and Shannon discuss bonuses and how they feel about them.
Allegra discusses why she is “Anti-Bonus”.
After listening to this podcast, prepare your employer that your negotiation muscle is going to start flexing!
TAKEAWAY: As the Wayne Gretzky quote says, “You miss 100% of the shots you never take” – so find ways to take more shots at not only getting paid more but getting paid what you deserve!
Random Three Questions:
Would you rather read a book or watch tv?
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
If you had to make a meal for somebody, what would you make?