Sorry, Recruiters! My Salary History Is None of Your Business

As you move along in your career you'll find that more and more often, the obstacles and limitations you run into are under your control. 
We can complain about the worst aspects of the working world -- and believe me, there are plenty of them and I document them in my columns -- but it is not satisfying for very long to wring our hands about the way things are.

 
If you want to improve your situation, you have to change it yourself.
One of the most important skills to learn as you in move up in your career and life is how to set boundaries.
Too many job-seekers, for instance, fall under the spell of the powerful idea that job-seekers are nothing and employers have all the power. They go along with that idea, and hurt themselves in the process.
You will indeed be powerless if you believe in your heart that anybody off the street can do the same things you do at work and produce the same results you produce.
If you believe that, then your mojo is gone. You are in no shape to be job-hunting for anything more than a survival job if you don't believe that you bring something valuable to the hiring equation.
Once you get altitude on your career and remember how many big, meaty problems you've solved already, you won't be so quick to play the part of The Doormat in your job search.
You'll realize that begging for a job is a great way to get a lousy job that will crush your spirit. People are good at reading energy, just like dogs and other animals are.
When you are so far down that any escape from unemployment looks appealing, you will bring in people who will take advantage of you.
Your number one assignment during your job search is to maintain your mojo level. Get out of doors and hike or ride your bike.
Remember what your body feels like. Write in your journal. Get together with friends who will remind you that you are powerful with or without a job title. You don't need an employer to confer brains or pluck or amazing creativity on you. You carry those things around with you. 
Some recruiters are awesome advocates for job-seekers. You need one of those in your corner. Ask your friends who they recommend. Reach out to those who use a human voice in their LinkedIn profiles.
Reach out to the recruiters who address job-seekers in their LinkedIn profiles ("Let me help you find your next job!"), rather than the ones who talk just to employers.
You don't have time for the wrong kind of recruiter -- the predatory, "I hold the cards to your future" kind. Run away from them! You'll know right away which kind of recruiter you're talking to the minute you get on the phone.
The old-school, bullying type of recruiter will ask for (that is, demand) your salary details. That information is none of their business. They don't need it. They only need to know your salary requirement -- your target salary for your job search. You've got to have that number ready to share.

Recruiter: So, what are you earning now?
You: I'm focusing on jobs in the $55k range. Will that work for this assignment?
Recruiter: I need to know what you're earning at your current job.
You: My salary target is $55K per year. Does this job pay in the $55K range?
Recruiter: I don't know.
You: Oh, dear! That is a shame. I assumed that you would know the salary level of a job you are recruiting for. Well, you can send me an email message when you find out whether my $55K salary target will work for your client, or not.
Recruiter: If you can't tell me your current salary, we can't continue this conversation.
You: That sounds great -- please take me off your list in that case, and have a great day.
The world is changing fast. Those job-seekers who stand up for themselves get better jobs at higher salaries than the sheep-and-doormat crowd. Here's why: they know their own value!
There are many reasons for smart and capable people to be tossed out of a recruiting pipeline. You might be asking for more money than they want to pay. No problem -- you'd rather be dropped out of the pipeline than waste your precious time.
You might have the type of personality that will push the leadership team farther than they are comfortable going. Once again, "You're not a fit" is a welcome message in that case! 
When you get bounced from a recruiting process, it isn't a knock on you. It isn't a rejection. It doesn't mean you did anything wrong. You have to be ready for that occurrence and see it for what it is. Some people simply don't want to hire anyone as high-powered and self-assured as you are!
The bigger your muscles get, the more opportunities you will say "No thanks" to, sometimes early in the process and other times at a later point. The more mojo you have, the more likely you are to be a non-fit for jobs that wouldn't interest you anyway!
The more aware of your value you are as you chat with recruiters and employers, the more value you can command. That's the payoff for stepping out of your comfort zone and refusing to roll over on your back like a submissive pup.
How do people get the things they want in life? They do it by telling Mother Nature and themselves through their words and actions what they need. You get to do that every time a recruiter contacts you and tries to pry into your personal finances.
Give the recruiter what they need -- your salary target -- and invite them to rise up to a human level and demonstrate their suitability to be your professional representative. If a given recruiter can't manage that step, he or she has plenty of competitors for you to choose from!

Questions and Answers

Liz, when I fill out an online job application I have no choice -- I have to include a starting and ending salary for every job I've held so far. How do I handle this obstacle?
Don't apply for jobs through online job portals! Reach your hiring manager directly, instead. Check out the virtual course Get the Job You Deserve (details below) to learn how to do it!
Liz, I am a recruiter and in our firm we are taught to get every candidate's current salary and salary history.
Our clients feel that they need that information to determine what a certain candidate is worth. How do I convince them otherwise?
Your clients determine what a job-seeker's abilities are worth by looking at what a completely different firm paid him or her? That is amazing. Please don't tell your clients I said so, but it's actually pathetic. 
Every business person should be able to gauge the qualifications of any job-seeker he or she might interview -- how else could a recruiter do his or her job?
If I talk with a job-seeker for half an hour I will peg their appropriate salary level within a few thousand dollars. It's not rocket science.
If your clients can't determine a candidate's value except by relying on unknown people at another company to tell them what a candidate is worth on the market, they aren't very good at their jobs.
Tell your client "I will get the candidate's salary requirement. You already know your hiring salary range (which should actually be included in the job ads you run, because you waste your own time and a lot of other people's time by leaving that vital information out). If your hiring range and the candidate's salary requirement are close, then it makes sense to go forward with the conversation."
Well-informed and mojo-fueled candidates are a good thing, not a bad thing for employers. People who know what they bring to the employment equation will do a better job for your company than people who will let you step on them. We are all learning to operate in the Human Workplace -- and you get to lead your clients through the doorway! 
We are all growing muscles together! 

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