How To Negotiate Your First Job

Take Note, Females!

“I went to a talk that Paul and Farzana gave at Tufts University School of Medicine a couple of weeks back. I was concerned because as a young student about to graduate grad school, I expressed to Paul and Farzana that I was worried about negotiating because I’m young and don’t have much experience. They assured me that once I’ve been offered a job, the company has already decided that they want me. Furthermore, they explained (and the book does too) that as a woman, I must go about the negotiation differently. I won’t spoil the book, but I’ll just say that I used the methods that the book suggests for women. Long story short, I was able to get my employer up $14k!!! I would recommend this book to anyone, but especially females. Sadly, our world can still be quite sexist. After accepting this sad truth, Paul and Farzana do a great job of describing how to deal with the hand that we, as women, are dealt. Thank you Farzana and Paul!”

-Allison (Tufts University), via Amazon.com

One of the best gifts you can give a college grad!

“Several months after starting my first post-college job in a small ad agency, my boss offered me an additional job with more responsibilities along with a small raise. Flattered by the offer, I accepted. After reading “How to Negotiate Your First Job” I realize I saved the company time and money by my ability to step into a job that had to be filled quickly. If I’d read a book like this I’d have had the confidence to negotiate a higher salary. The agency needed me more than I needed them.

As the authors say, “While the principles and strategies you’ll learn in this book are specific to negotiating your first job offer, the lessons and concepts are also broadly applicable to the kinds of conversations and negotiations you’ll encounter in your everyday life, as well as through the rest of your professional career.”"

- SitaLL, via Amazon.com

Wise Counsel for Job Entrants

“Levy and Mohamed’s How to Negotiate Your First Job is replete with practical insights for those segueing into the world of work. By drawing on their own experience and culling examples from the jobs arena, the authors persuasively ground their advice in a realistic context. Any reader will emerge better equipped for the interview process. The job aspirant will glean tactical tips such as how to frame requests that the employer can likely grant. Over and beyond any specific conditions of the ask, the book encourages readers to develop a sense of self-awareness. First of all know who you are and what you would like. Then exercise social awareness and divine the mindset of the hiring party. By executing empathy in this fashion, the job seeker can engage in what the authors call “jointly decided action.” This approach generates a proclivity for agreement by integrating the perspective of both parties. If all parties emerge with their self-esteem intact, the negotiated settlement is more likely to be long-lasting. The bottom line question then becomes: “How can I get what I want and still satisfy you”? As one who has taught college seniors for thirty-five years, I shall be calling the attention of my students to this clear and compelling contribution. I only wish that the book had been available years ago when I interviewed for my first post.”

- David P. Boyd

Practical, directly applicable to real professional situations and easy to read. A must read to have in your library

“A must read to have in your library for reference and review when necessary. Great book for anyone in a negotiation process, not only in first job situations. It provides very well prepared examples and use cases in a step process approach. Examples are from real professional situations and therefore of direct application for your own professional life. Practical, energetic, supportive, applicable and easy to read. Steps 6 “Trade on differences” and 7 “Sharpen your tactics” are my favorite.”

- Mario Moya, via Amazon.com

Not just for a first job! Helpful and easy read with specific scenarios to learn from

“I was struggling with how to negotiate my next career move and this book helped me gain confidence and tactics to make a successful negotiation. I appreciated that there was an entire chapter devoted to gender that specifically guides professional women into effective negotiations. The book truly made the process easier and helped me think about what I wanted from my next endeavor.”

- Liza, via Amazon.com

Super-useful

“With this extremely useful, easily digestible book, Levy and Mohamed have addressed a key gap in the literature on negotiation. I especially enjoyed the “On the Issue of Gender” section at the end. I just finished reading “Women Don’t Ask”– these authors summarize the major points of that book very well and then relate them to the special challenges & opportunities that gender can present in the early-career context.

An excellent read, one I particularly recommend as a gift for college students or for young professionals. Much better than just winging it, or relying on “wisdom from mom & dad” that is often overly situational and/or individual– Levy & Mohamed focus on proven tactics & frameworks that actually work. A bargain investment at $10 a copy (just think of what the payback on this must be for readers!).”

-E. Rose, via Amazon.com

Must read for recent college graduates

“Once I read through the first few pages of this book, I couldn’t stop and ended up reading cover-to-cover in the last hour. This is an extremely well-written book with practical, real-life examples of negotiations that will be very helpful to not just recent college graduates but also mid-career professionals who want to brush up on such skills.”

-Seraj S. Bharwani, via Amazon.com

This is useful across your career

“An accessible, practical guide to negotiation: I’m going to recommend it to all my undergraduates. It takes the fear away from negotiating an initial salary by breaking it down into 8 steps that anyone can do. The underlying theme of ‘it’s just business, not personal’ helps to remove anxiety. The background research steps help to balance the power in a negotiation that often feels like the employer has the upper hand. Cases and examples illustrate throughout so that it’s easy to see how to actually implement the steps. Imagine the confidence one would feel after successfully negotiating! Kudos to Levy and Mohamed for such a valuable resource for those just starting out (or frankly anyone – the advice is useful across one’s career!)”

- Jodi Detjen, co-author, The Orange Line: A Woman’s Guide to Integrating Career, Family and Life