Lean in to your earning potential. This is my call to action for you this year.
What do I mean by this? If you’re spending time at work, then own it, including fiscally. It means taking risks, going for positions, projects and promotions that will pay more. It necessitates putting your hand up, negotiating and stretching yourself.
If you don't want to count every penny ... then pushing hard, taking risks and earning more in your current job is another way of speeding up your journey to financial independence.
Securing a salary increase is a fabulous way to achieve financial independence that much sooner. Plus, let’s face it, it will give you a buzz if you go for something and get it rather than simply going through the motions of showing up for work and doing the same old thing.
This week I had a conversation with a professor of business. He was telling me how he instils certain values in his students. His students have job offers before they finish their degrees, which he admits sometimes backfires because the impetus to achieve their best can be diminished.
He’s doing a lot right and his "kids", as he calls them, stay in touch.
The professor shared the story of two alumni that played out recently. One had two-and-a-half years of work experience and had been approached by a firm with an offer of $90,000 (Dh330,525).
The same firm approached another alumnus with 18 months of experience under her belt. She was offered $85,000.
The $90,000 person wanted to stay on with his company because it meant he could relocate with them to a place where his soon-to-be fiancée was getting a big career break. So, he turned down the lucrative offer in favour of his personal life.
The $85,000 person said she’d accept the offer if they matched the $90,000 being offered to the other candidate. Her professor had shared the inside intel with her.
The amount was matched. This took guts because it meant a $25,000 increase on her then salary.
During an exit interview with her existing employer, they matched the $90,000 pay, and she stayed. So she managed a $25,000 higher pay because she decided to be gutsy. That’s a 38.5 per cent salary increase based on one moment of bravery.
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UAE salary guide 2020: how much should you be earning?
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This means that if she gets the 4.5 per cent salary increase for 2020, that the global consulting company Mercer projected in a study conducted at the end of last year, she will be earning an additional $4,050 instead of $2,929. On it goes from there with incremental increases piling up, and of course the next rise means she'll bag more again.
Almost two thirds of people never ask for a raise, according to a 2018 survey by the US career site PayScale. Of those who did, about 70 per cent reported receiving some sort of increase.
If you don’t want to count every penny or use extra time for a side hustle, then pushing hard, taking risks and earning more in your current job is another way of speeding up your journey to financial independence. I’m sharing a few pointers on how you can go about it:
Do your homework
Research salary comparison websites. Talk to HR or job recruitment firms and find out what pay your position receives.
Don’t assume
The person who decides your salary might know very little about what you do and the value you add to the company. Have hard evidence to back up your request, such as the targets you've reached and the contracts you've signed.
Have an answer
Make sure you can answer this question: “Why should we give you a pay rise?”
Timing
Find out when budgets are being planned and make your request before things are finalised. Ideally, match this up with the feel good factor of a project being successfully completed.
Be precise
Research at Columbia Business School, published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, finds that asking for a specific and precise salary works better than putting forward a rounded up figure. It indicates, or is assumed, that you have thought things through and have reasons for your precise figure.
Make sure you can justify it. Imagine putting forward a figure of $50,250 without being able to explain what the $250 was for.
Always have a Plan B
If you don’t get the pay increase you want, ask for something else. It could be flexible work, an extra week’s holiday every year or training and development.
I don’t know of anyone who got fired for asking for a pay rise. I’d say it has the opposite effect – it shows you have ambition and want to stay with the company. As long as you don’t go about it by getting a job offer first, then threatening you’ll leave.
You have more earning potential than you think but you have to take some risks to unlock it. Remember, 70 per cent of those who asked in the PayScale study got an increase. Go for it.
Nima Abu Wardeh is a broadcast journalist, columnist, blogger and founder of S.H.E. Strategy. Share her journey on finding-nima.com
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
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How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
Pupils in Abu Dhabi are learning the importance of being active, eating well and leading a healthy lifestyle now and throughout adulthood, thanks to a newly launched programme 'Healthy Lifestyle'.
As part of the Healthy Lifestyle programme, specially trained coaches from City Football Schools, along with Healthpoint physicians have visited schools throughout Abu Dhabi to give fun and interactive lessons on working out regularly, making the right food choices, getting enough sleep and staying hydrated, just like their favourite footballers.
Organised by Manchester City FC and Healthpoint, Manchester City FC’s regional healthcare partner and part of Mubadala’s healthcare network, the ‘Healthy Lifestyle’ programme will visit 15 schools, meeting around 1,000 youngsters over the next five months.
Designed to give pupils all the information they need to improve their diet and fitness habits at home, at school and as they grow up, coaches from City Football Schools will work alongside teachers to lead the youngsters through a series of fun, creative and educational classes as well as activities, including playing football and other games.
Dr Mai Ahmed Al Jaber, head of public health at Healthpoint, said: “The programme has different aspects - diet, exercise, sleep and mental well-being. By having a focus on each of those and delivering information in a way that children can absorb easily it can help to address childhood obesity."
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Samaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission 10-speed automatic
Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km
Gran Gala del Calcio 2019 winners
Best Player: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Best Coach: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta)
Best Referee: Gianluca Rocchi
Best Goal: Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria vs Napoli)
Best Team: Atalanta
Best XI: Samir Handanovic (Inter); Aleksandar Kolarov (Roma), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Joao Cancelo (Juventus*); Miralem Pjanic (Juventus), Josip Ilicic (Atalanta), Nicolo Barella (Cagliari*); Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
Serie B Best Young Player: Sandro Tonali (Brescia)
Best Women’s Goal: Thaisa (Milan vs Juventus)
Best Women’s Player: Manuela Giugliano (Milan)
Best Women’s XI: Laura Giuliani (Milan); Alia Guagni (Fiorentina), Sara Gama (Juventus), Cecilia Salvai (Juventus), Elisa Bartoli (Roma); Aurora Galli (Juventus), Manuela Giugliano (Roma), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus); Valentina Giacinti (Milan), Ilaria Mauro (Fiorentina), Barbara Bonansea (Juventus)
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
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Tesalam Aleik
Abdullah Al Ruwaished
(Rotana)
The%20Specs
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Draw for Europa League last-16
Istanbul Basaksehir v Copenhagen; Olympiakos Piraeus v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Rangers v Bayer Leverkusen; VfL Wolfsburg v Shakhtar Donetsk; Inter Milan v Getafe
Sevilla v AS Roma; Eintracht Frankfurt or Salzburg v Basel; LASK v Manchester United
