How I got a 50% raise - just by asking for it

So because I was talking about salary negotiation in a previous article, I decided to muster up some girl power and practice salary negotiation myself. And I found that negotiation is an essential skill, and you have to practice to become good at it.

Because of my negotiation, I just negotiated a 50% increase (from $20/hr to $30/hr) for a part-time contract job!

So let's back this up. I'm a medical student, which means big debt. Plus, I love to travel, which means more debt. I've started living at home to save money to pay for this lifestyle, but that doesn't begin to dig into my $15,000/year tuition.

That's where the part-time job idea comes in. I looked around for something that could be:

1. Done from home.

2. Very flexible in work hours.

3. Good pay.

So I applied to a couple places, and got one reply, from a company's HR department. She said she loved what she saw and offered me a starting salary.

This is where it got smart. Before I had applied, I had already established in my head my lowest working rate, which was 50% higher than their offer.

At first HR Woman said it wouldn't work for her company. With HUGE butterflies in my stomach, I said that my stated salary was the lowest I was willing to accept given my level of expertise, and we ended the phone conversation. I thought I had blown it, that it was the end - but somehow I held myself back from calling her back and begging her to give me the job for the lower price.

Yet just an hour later, HR Woman emails me back and says they agree to my salary- 50% higher than what she had offered in the beginning!

I think this worked because:

1. I knew they wanted me
2. I had expertise for a specific project that no one else on their staff could efficiently handle
3. I was willing to walk out.

Ladies (and gentlemen) - negotiation works. Use it. This is also fabulous practice for bigger fish later when I graduate.