Based on your past experience with negotiating, your attitude about negotiating a job offer may be less than positive. Maybe you had a bad experience negotiating the price of a car (which was my experience), and as a result you really dislike the process. Why not just accept what you are offered and avoid the whole unpleasant scenario? In many situations, you will be walking away from an opportunity to best meet your needs, while also filling the employer’s requirements. Will you suffer from “buyer’s remorse” later?

At the top of the list of reasons you should negotiate is the fact that you are your own best advocate! No one else will represent you in the way that you will. If you do have specific priorities that need to be met, you are the best person to articulate those priorities and negotiate to ensure that they are filled. This is a challenge that only you can meet.

Secondly, you probably have bottom-line needs. Whether the issue is a salary level necessary to maintain your standard of living or a flexible work schedule to coordinate care for your children, you have requirements that must be met for you to be successful in a new job. Your new employer will not get the best performance you can provide if these needs are not met. In that scenario, you are both set up to fail if you don’t negotiate.

Finally, your long-range financial future could be affected, particularly if you are in the early stages of your career. The salary that you accept now will affect your future raises and long-term earning potential. 

Don’t you owe it to yourself to negotiate the best and most fair salary that you can? Your decision now could make a difference of thousands of dollars down the road.