Most people (who are not accustomed to negotiating) are afraid that negotiating will:
Make them look too pushy or demanding
Make them seem ungrateful for the job offer in a tight job market
Tag them as a high-maintenance prima donna, and not a team player
Make future raises or promotions more difficult to obtain
Start off the relationship with their manager on a bad note
In reality, your negotiating ability is a strength and an asset to your prospective employer. By negotiating effectively right from the start, you are demonstrating that when you're on the other side of the desk, you'll negotiate on behalf of the company to make the best deals, get the best prices, and generate the most profit. Some hiring managers even go so far as to say that when candidates do no negotiating at all, or stop negotiating too early in the process, they are disappointed.
Note
Your negotiating ability is a strength and an asset to your prospective employer.
Everyone knows that negotiating for your livelihood is serious business. But in another way, negotiating is a game. The fact is that employers win this game the majority of the time. Want to know why? Because most job seekers don 't know the rules! It's pretty tough to win a game when you don't know how the game is played, right?
So, in this section, we'll spend some time learning the game. Now remember, it is a game. Games have rules. Games are supposed to be fun. And as is true in all games, the more you practice, the better you'll do. Let's lay out the 21 rules of this game, to ensure that you'll be on a level playing field at your next negotiation.