I discovered something by accident about 2 or 3 years ago that surprised me.
I was interviewing with a potential client, and the interview was taking longer than expected. I was starting to get tired when the client asked me:
“I’m interviewing other virtual assistants whose hourly rates are in the single digits. Why should I hire you instead?”
My response wasn’t something I had planned. It was simply the truth because, at that point, I was getting tired of the interview.
I said:
“If you hire me, you know you’re hiring someone who will do the job right. I don’t take on too many clients at the same time. Whenever I need to replace a client, I send out proposals, do a few interviews, and take on one client, which is what I’m doing right now. So if we end up working together, I’ll have enough time and focus to give your business the attention needed instead of spreading myself too thin.”
That response made the client realize that I didn’t need the job; I had options, even though that wasn’t my intention.
I immediately saw a shift in his entire attitude. Within less than two minutes, he offered me the job during the interview.
That experience surprised me.
He went from wanting me to convince him to wanting to hire me before I accepted another offer.
From that moment, I realized two things.
1. People assign higher value to what is in high demand.
No matter how capable you are, if you come across as desperate for a job, employers are more likely to undervalue your skills.
2. You will get paid as little as you’re willing to accept.
Most employers will pay as little as they can get away with, regardless of your capability.
When I had a full-time office job, I reached the point where I was doing the work of an operations manager for the largest distribution company in my state, but I was making only ₦60,000 per month.
I worked directly with the CEO. When I told him I was leaving, he immediately offered to double my salary, hire an assistant for me, and even said he was open to more negotiating.
The company was comfortable paying me so little because they believed I had no other options.
That’s why, if I were to give one piece of career advice based on my personal experience, it would be this:
It’s okay to start at the bottom, but never hand over your career growth to your employer.
Always have a clear plan for how you’re going to move your career forward.
The more skills you develop, the more you put yourself out there, the more opportunities you’ll create for yourself, and the more confident you’ll become.
When you’re confident in your abilities, you’ll be able to look a potential employer in the eye and confidently ask for a rate that would have sounded unreasonable to the old version of you.
Cheers 🥂
