You want a raise, a promotion, or credit for work you already do. These posts cover when and how to ask for a raise, asking for a promotion, a promotion that was promised or went to someone else, doing work above your level, and work that goes unseen or gets credited to someone else.
The right time to ask for a raise depends less on your calendar than on when pay decisions are made at your company. Ask before the budget closes, with fresh evidence and a clear meeting, and convert a 'not now' into a date and criteria.
Ask for a raise with your case, a number, and a question that makes any answer readable. Then sort the no you got: the case, the path, or the money.
A promotion request works when it names the role, shows you are already doing part of it, and asks what is missing and when it will be decided. The first conversation should aim for a clear path with a date, not an immediate yes.
A promotion is usually decided from criteria someone can apply, not from how busy you were.
A promotion promise often reflects a manager's intention rather than a final decision by the person who approves it. Check what was said, who can deliver, and whether that person will set a new date and criteria.
Being passed over sends you looking for why. First work out what you didn't get: the job, including what it would have cost you, and not only the title. Then decide how much the pass-over should matter.
One pass-over may be bad luck. Two or more turns it into data. Build a cycle log, read it for repeated gaps, moving criteria, and missing reasons, and ask for written criteria before the next round.
You may have compared yourself to the peer on skill, tenure, or output. The person who decided may have weighed something else. Here is how to find the criterion that actually decided it.
Train the person who got the job, or hand them your work: ask which criteria they used, whether the handover ends, and what extra you renegotiate.
A manager who doesn't advocate may not rate your work, may have no voice in the room, or may not know what to say. Test which problem you have, give them a one-page case, and build routes to the decider that don't look like going around your boss.
Work above your level can be a trial for the next role, which needs an end date and criteria, or a way to fill a gap cheaply. Ask in writing how long it lasts and what it leads to, then choose among the title, the pay, or handing work back.
A dry promotion (a promotion without a raise) asks you to deliver now and be paid later, maybe. Price the terms: size, date, backdating, who signs.
A raise below the official inflation figure means your pay may buy less on average than last year, but inflation alone is a weak argument with most employers. Use it as context for a case built on your work and the market for your role.
Learning that a coworker earns more is a lead, not a verdict. Check whether the comparison holds, raise your own pay on its own terms, and use the official channels if the gap points to discrimination.
To tell if you're underpaid, compare your whole package with what others pay for the same work, not the same title. Then ask, look, or stay at a known price.
Make decision-makers see the outcome and that you produced it. Find who decides, report outcomes, use existing channels, and claim your work plainly.
Confidence and arrogance look similar from the inside. The difference shows up in how you handle being overlooked — and it quietly decides how far your advancement actually goes.
'Undervalued' bundles different gaps: pay, title, credit, being asked, being consulted, respect. Name the specific gap and test it with one direct request before deciding whether to stay, ask, or leave.
Ask for recognition in a specific, usable form: your name on the work, credit with the decider, a note in your review, or an invitation to present. A vague request for appreciation is easy to answer with nothing.
When your boss takes credit for your work, ask for a correction in the document a later decision will use.
Not sure which one fits? Get a Sharp First Read on your own decision.
Get a sharp read →