Do the homework first: know what similar roles pay and have a few examples of your work ready. Then play this in the half hour before the conversation. It takes two or three minutes. Let it loop while you look over your notes one last time.
Read by Ivy
01Today I ask about my pay. Managers have this conversation all the time.
02My homework is done. I know the going rate and what I’ve added this year.
03Results come first. The problems I’ve solved make the case for me.
04I say my number clearly, then let the quiet sit.
05No apology needed. Wanting fair pay for good work is reasonable, not greedy.
06Their first answer may be no. A no today can still become a plan.
07I listen, then ask what it would take.
08Calm and friendly. We both want this to work.
09My worth as a person isn’t on the table. We’re talking about my work.
10Whatever they say, I asked. Asking was the hard part.
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Why it’s written this way
Asking for more money feels risky, so most people talk themselves out of it or soften the ask until it disappears. This loop doesn’t tell you you’re owed anything or that words will bring the money in. It grounds you in what you can control: your preparation, your examples, the way you say your number.
The order follows the conversation. First it makes asking feel normal, then it reminds you of your evidence, then it gives you the two moves people find hardest: stating a number and staying quiet afterwards, and not apologizing for it.
The second half prepares you for a no, which is common and often not final. Asking what it would take turns a refusal into a plan. The note separating your worth as a person from the value of your work takes the sting out of the whole thing. It ends on the part you have already done by walking in: asking.