Salary Story: I Took A Promotion — Then Quickly Moved On Without Guilt
Last Updated February 18, 2025, 12:00 PM
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In our series Salary Stories, women with long-term career experience open up about the most intimate details of their jobs: compensation. It’s an honest look at how real people navigate the complicated world of negotiating, raises, promotions and job loss, with the hope it will give young people more insight into how to advocate for themselves — and maybe take a few risks along the way.
Been in the workforce for at least five years and interested in contributing your salary story? Submit your information here.
Been in the workforce for at least five years and interested in contributing your salary story? Submit your information here.
Age: 30
Location: Washington, DC area
Current industry and job title:
Senior sales engineer, Technology
Current salary: $200,000
Number of years employed since school or university: Eight
Starting salary: $21,000 in 2015
Biggest salary jump: My salary jumped by $67,000 when I changed careers from consulting ($120,000) to sales engineer for a tech company ($187,000 with a stock grant).
Biggest salary drop: N/A
Location: Washington, DC area
Current industry and job title:
Senior sales engineer, Technology
Current salary: $200,000
Number of years employed since school or university: Eight
Starting salary: $21,000 in 2015
Biggest salary jump: My salary jumped by $67,000 when I changed careers from consulting ($120,000) to sales engineer for a tech company ($187,000 with a stock grant).
Biggest salary drop: N/A
Biggest negotiation regret: I wish I'd negotiated my current salary more. I'm very happy with my pay, however, a friend of mine who joined my company in my same role a couple months after I did negotiated their salary and it resulted in a higher base salary for them. I was so thrilled to be offered the salary I was, I just took it! Lesson learned: always negotiate, never feel guilty for your success.
Best salary advice: It's not worth staying in a job in a toxic environment just in the hope that you can get a slightly higher salary with your next raise. It usually makes more sense to start looking at other jobs, which will most likely result in more pay and probably a better experience. Also, be wary of signing bonuses! Know the payback terms. The company usually has a clause. If you leave your role within two years of signing the contract and you have accepted a sign on bonus, you must pay back the full amount of the sign on bonus, including tax.
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