How Much Money Should I Ask For?

Every so often I get a couple of phone calls or emails that go something along the lines of...

"How much money should I be making as a (tech, programmer, electrician, lighting designer, fill-in-the-blank)?"

That's probably the hardest question to answer in the history of live event production. Information about what people earn in our industry is hard to come by. A lot of people don't like to disclose that information for whatever reason, and companies discourage employees from discussing it with other employees because if any two employees know what the other is making, chances are that one of them is going to be disappointed, hurt, or upset. This lack of information leaves us all at a disadvantage when we're negotiating compensation. Information is power.

There are companies out there that focus on collecting data about average salaries and compensation based on job titles. The idea is that you should be able to type in your job title or job description and get a good idea of your market value. And knowing what the going rate for your job description is key to making sure you're being fairly compensated.

I once read a blog post by best-selling author Bernard Marr, and he had a great suggestion for negotiating your salary or compensation. It's always uncomfortable when you have to decide how much to ask for a salary or pay rate. So rather than talk about how much you need to live or to support your lifestyle, it's much better to talk about the market rate for someone with your skills.

The problem is that there is very little (if any) data for the live event production industry. If we had a better idea of the average hourly rates, day rates, or salaries of techs, electricians, programmers, and designers based on geographic location, then it would be much easier to negotiate a fair compensation package. Instead, we're pretty much left to our own devices and often time we are negotiating in the dark. If only we had some light!

Shining some light on the subject would be easier if there was a central depository of information that was completely anonymous. Then no one would be self-conscious or fear retribution. But even with such a database, there are no guarantees that people wouldn't try to game the system by reporting higher compensation in hopes of pushing up the curve. What we really need is third party reporting. Until then, here are some ideas that might be helpful:

1. Think win-win. Your compensation is a two-way street. If you want a longterm relationship, then whoever is paying you needs to be fairly compensated in terms of benefits from your endeavors or cash money.

2. Think longterm. Not only do you need to earn enough money to live, but you will some day want to retire, so you should be tucking away about 15% of your income for that purpose.

3. Think overhead. In addition to paying yourself, you'll also need to pay expenses and overhead that could include self-employment taxes, office supplies, utilities (that portion of which is used exclusively for your job), and more.

4. Think about taxes. Uncle Sam (or the equivalent governmental entity if you live outside of the USA) will come calling every year and you have to be prepared to write a check to cover your taxes.

What am I missing?