I Went From Making $35,000 To $105,000 In Just 7 Years

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 women more insight into how to advocate for themselves — and maybe take a few risks along the way.

Additionally, we are joining forces with SoFi for the next few months to bring you career tips and coaching. We got the low-down from SoFi's career coaches who recommend:

ABC: Always be connecting! Approach new connections with a give/get mentality, thinking as much about how you can help them as they can help you.

Been in the workforce for at least eight years and interested in contributing your salary story? Submit your information here.

Previously, we talked to a 34-year-old marketing communications manager who became the highest paid manager at her company after learning to negotiate, a 30-year-old engineering analyst who got an $11,000 raise after telling her manager she got another job offer, and a 27-year-old operations manager who is finally learning how to advocate for herself at work.

Age: 30
Current Location: Brooklyn, NY
Current Industry & Title: Marketing, Associate Director
Starting Salary: $35,000 in 2010
Current Salary: $105,000
Number Of Years Employed: 8
Biggest Salary Jump: $17,000 in 2014
Biggest Salary Drop: $10,000 in 2015

Biggest Salary Negotiation Regret: "I took on a job as a social media manager for a brand where I took a $10,000 pay cut. When interviewing for the new job, I asked for only $5,000 more than the job I had before, despite having another full year's experience. I really should have given more thought to what the standards were for the industry instead of limiting myself to my own past salaries."

Best Salary-Related Advice: “When you are searching for a new job, always aim to make 20-30% more than your current job. If there is really no wiggle room on their part, and you still want the position, see if they will budge at least $5,000 more than the original proposed salary.

“Most companies can afford to provide that much, and it really doesn't make as much of a difference to them. However, for you, that $5,000 could be paying off credit card debt or your IRA contribution for the year.

“I also feel that people tend to settle for certain salaries when they accept a job, when it should be seen as an opportunity to see if you can make more. I've seen way too many people in my industry get underpaid for what they are worth.”