Professionalism.guideA practical framework for working well with others

Your career

How to ask for a promotion or raise

You believe your work has outgrown your title or your pay. This guide helps you build the case, make the request clearly, learn what the answer depends on, and negotiate a concrete next step.

16 topics · 91 min · Press play to listen in order, or read any topic.

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Phase 1 · 5 topics · 28 min

Build your case

A request based on evidence is easier to grant than one based on feeling. Prepare before you say a word.

  1. Learn how these decisions are made where you work: who approves them, when budgets are set, and what the criteria are.

    4:53 Read

  2. Take an honest look at what strengthens your position, such as results, scarce skills, or wider responsibility, and what does not.

    6:01 Read

  3. Read the situation your manager is in. A hiring freeze or a strong year changes what is possible and how your request will be heard.

    6:03 Read

  4. A manager who already knows and trusts your work is far easier to ask. Notice whether that relationship is in place before you rely on it.

    5:30 Read

  5. Before you walk in, step back from the outcome so that a no will not derail you. Imagining you are negotiating for someone else helps you stay clear-headed.

    5:47 Read

Your taskBefore continuing, list the results you will point to and the specific change you are asking for.

Phase 2 · 6 topics · 34 min

Ask, and find out what decides the answer

Hinting rarely works. Ask for the specific thing you want, then listen: the first response is rarely final.

  1. Choose a moment set aside for the conversation, not the end of another meeting. Give your manager room to respond properly.

    5:11 Read

  2. Lead with the request and the reason, then give the detail. Your manager should know what you are asking within the first sentences.

    5:33 Read

  3. Name the title or the figure. A vague wish to be recognized gives your manager nothing to act on.

    5:44 Read

  4. Present your record as fact, without apology and without inflating it. Confidence persuades; arrogance gives people a reason to refuse.

    5:33 Read

  5. Ask what the decision depends on, who else is involved, and what a successful case looks like.

    5:24 Read

  6. Consider feedback you do not like on its merits. If a gap is real, knowing about it is the most useful thing you will take from the meeting.

    6:05 Read

Your taskBefore continuing, rehearse your request and three strongest reasons in under a minute, and decide what you will ask if the answer is not yes.

Phase 3 · 5 topics · 29 min

Negotiate a way forward

If the full request is not possible today, look for a real commitment in its place.

  1. Expect offers and counteroffers. Know in advance what you would accept and what you would trade.

    6:33 Read

  2. Consider alternatives that still move you forward: a staged increase, a review date, or new responsibilities with a defined path to the title.

    5:33 Read

  3. These decisions often take months. Keep the conversation alive with agreed check-ins without pushing so hard that you become a nuisance.

    5:42 Read

  4. Know the point at which the answer is truly no, and what you will do then. Walking away is sometimes the right outcome of a negotiation.

    5:06 Read

  5. Whatever the answer, keep doing good work in good spirit. How you respond to a no is noticed by the people who decide next time.

    5:45 Read

Your taskFinish by recording what was agreed, what you will do, and the date you will review it together.