The average salary is probably one of the most common numbers used in a salary negotiation. Like all averages, it is probably not used because it is the best number, but rather because it is the easiest number to calculate.
The average is figured out by creating some number of buckets of types of people out there and dropping each person into that bucket. The salaries in the bucket are added up and divided by the number of people in that bucket. What most people like about it is that it gives them one number to remember when they are thinking about what a person gets paid. We all know like any other average, there is a lot more to it than that one number. Just like the average price for a gallon of gas across the United States is nothing close to what I paid for gas this morning, the calculated “average salary for you” may be a lot less than what you really should get paid.
There are a few things to consider when thinking about average salaries.
1. There are not that many buckets and there can be a lot of people in them that don’t really compare to your situation. There may be a bucket called “Mechanical Technician with 3 years of experience”. This doesn’t at all consider the range of experiences, education, geography or even industry for the people in that bucket.
2. Average Salaries don’t adequately consider that those salaries are a part of an overall compensation package that may have included bonuses, stock options, healthcare benefits, etc. Your overall situation will likely be different from the averages and you shouldn’t be penalized because of that.
3. Average Salaries can lump together multiple years worth of salaries. This means that “today’s average salary” can be based upon salaries from people that negotiated their salaries 10 years ago. If you just think about what the world was like 10 years ago, you will instantly realize that things are very different so your salary negotiation should also be very different.
But here is the biggest problem – the average salary is for the average person. You are not the average person, you are much better than the average person. The fact that you have made efforts to study and understand the salary negotiation process puts you at the top end of professionals out there. Most people are comfortable sitting back and letting a job tell them what they deserve. You are going to go out there and make sure that you know and get what you deserve.
