Get a raise from your boss using Psychology!

Get a raise from your boss using Psychology!

Asking for a raise from your boss is an intimidating task; your boss probably doesn’t want to offer you more money to do the same job. There are some common sense tips that you can find all over the internet (e.g. come prepared, dress well, be confident), but when your boss is hesitant to give that raise, you might need to bring in some new techniques. I will focus on two techniques that will lead you to a bigger paycheck: labeling and disrupt then reframe.

First is the labeling technique which involves applying a label to an individual and then giving the person a chance to perform in a manner consistent with a label. For example, you might tell your buddy that he’s a great friend before you ask to use his car so that he’s more likely to rise to the giving qualities of a good friend. Labeling can have such a strong effect because it pertains to an individual’s self-concept. The individual will want to appear to match the label you have just assigned to verify to both you and their selves that the label is accurate. When you walk into your boss’ room, preempt the negotiation of salary by telling your boss that they have always been a fair and reasonable person. This is a nice label to hear and the boss will want to have consistency with this appraisal and their actions.

The average person is bombarded with thousands of messages each day that ask for compliance whether it be to buy a special bar of soap or to give money to the homeless person at the end of the street. At this point people are used to hearing the same spiel and will reject many persuasion attempts. The disrupt and reframe technique involves using a momentary disruption to prevent people from processing persuasive messages through critical thinking. For example, one researcher tried to sell Christmas cards by asking for $3, whereas to another group, the researcher tried to sell Christmas cards by saying, “It’s 300 pennies, it’s a bargain.”  First the disruption was used to guide targets to avoiding the conscious, rational mind and the reframe of “it’s a bargain” was used to perform the task that the rational mind would normally do to determine whether to make the purchase. This technique utilizes an individual’s automatic system with is more prone to errors and biases. When talking to your boss, ask for a raise in an unexpected manner and then reframe the petition with a positive frame. For instance you might say, “I think I deserve $100 a day, that’s a great deal to keep a hard worker like myself on board!” Good luck!