Of Karma Whores and Raises

http://www.blogging4jobs.com/business/karma-will-help-women-get-a-raise-if-they-ask-for-it/
http://readwrite.com/2014/10/09/nadella-women-dont-ask-for-raise#ixzz3FgLmm24D
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/11/upshot/why-microsofts-nadella-is-wrong-about-women-and-raises.html

On October 9, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella wedged his foot firmly in mouth at the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference.

He told women in the tech industry not to ask for raises, promotions:

• It's not really about asking for the raise but knowing and having faith that the system will actually give you the right raises as you go along... Because that's good karma. It'll come back. Because somebody's going to know: 'That's the kind of person that I want to trust. That's the kind of person that I want to really give more responsibility to.' And in the long-term efficiency, things catch up.'

You can google Mr. Nadella's name to read more about the firestorm--and about his apologies and backtracking. I've supplied a few starting points above.

If you think that women (or men, for that matter) are going to be paid what they're worth just because they sit quietly and smile sweetly--well, I'd like to ask if you're interested in buying the Brooklyn Bridge for a very good price.

This comment made a lot of headlines. It was surprisingly naive, but it offers an opportunity to publicize a truth of the business world. Instead of playing Sleeping Beauty, waiting for the Salary-Increase Prince to come along and kiss you, brush up on basic salary negotiating skills, like the ones offered here:

http://womenforhire.com/negotiating_salary_benefits/negotiating_salary_101_tactics_for_better_compensation/