Noah Luna started on the path to his dream job at age 13, taking guitar lessons in Mountain View, California. As he learned about chords and music, his instructor instilled in him the importance of finding a way to turn what you love into a career. “He would say, you’ll need these skills. He kept the real world in mind.”Now, at 26, Luna is the owner and founder of Beauty in Cacophony Press, a full service company in San Jose that publishes sheet music and does pre-press editing and typesetting for other publishers. He is also a freelance composer. “It’s a total dream job, working with people I... view article details

Q. When accepting a part-time position in an office and asked about salary requirements, what is the appropriate thing to say? How can you compare a part-time to a full-time salary? A. In any negotiation, always try to get the other party to say a number first. That's as true for part-time work as for salary work. Part-time salaries are typically based on full-time salaries divided by the number of hours worked. Some companies pay part-time employees a discounted rate, that is, less than the equivalent full-time salary. Also, benefits are typically lower for part-time employees. Research the... view article details

Q: My company recently decided to eliminate company cars as a perk for any employee. Since they have always maintained that the benefit was "part of my compensation," I want to ask for a comparable amount of salary increase as a replacement for the loss. I've done a substantial amount of research and cannot find any good rules of thumb for determining the value of a company car benefit. How likely am I to get them to simply cover the cost of my monthly car payment on the replacement vehicle? Any ideas on the value of such a benefit? A: You may not be able to receive the monetary value of your... view article details

Most self-help books tell you all the things you need to start doing if you want to be successful. Which is why James Waldroop's 'The 12 Bad Habits That Hold Good People Back: Overcoming the Behavior Patterns That Keep You From Getting Ahead' is not your run-of-the-mill self-help book.Waldroop is this week's Salary Talk guest and he sits down with Aaron & Wendy for a rather unusual conversation. Instead of doling out tips on what people should begin doing if they want to succeed, Waldroop's book is a list of bad habits people need to STOP doing if they want to get ahead. And some of those bad ... view article details

Where do you get your salary data? Why isn't the Salary Wizard dispensing 'accurate' numbers? Should pilots who keep secrets about flying their client's mistresses around get bigger raises?These are just some of the questions you asked us. And we brought in the big guns to get you all the answers.While most of you are already familiar with Aaron and Wendy---the hosts of Salary Talk---this week we bring in Patrick and Mike, two other Salary.com employees, to get all of your questions answered. While Wendy gives a great primer/refresher on properly using the Salary Wizard, Patrick talks about th... view article details

Q. I relocated by choice. When I relocated, I couldn't keep the same position with my company. Now the company has offered me a position comparable to the one I left behind, but at the pay rate I was at before my position changed. What boundaries does my company have to adhere to, and should they calculate a cost-of-living increase? My immediate supervisor told me the cost of living was lower here than where I moved from. But after doing a little research I found that the cost of living is significantly higher where I am now.A. Since this was a voluntary move, the company is under no obligatio... view article details

Don't Forget the Basics For years I have taught innovative job search tactics. I figure as long as you do not lie or misrepresent, anything goes in job search. As a former sales guy I learned to be very crafty and successful with my get-past-the-gatekeeper/get-to-the-buyer techniques.There really are no rules when it comes to job search. I promote my one-page, short-form resume in order to 'game' resume filtering software. Other than that I propose being as creative as possible in order to break through to the other side. Seeking a graphic artist position? Blow 'em away with your grap... view article details

A collection of degrees and a host of credentials is all well and good, but if you don't have the right attitude at work you'll likely be shown the door. And that's a costly outcome for both employee and employer.Mark Murphy is the author of 'Hiring for Attitude: A Revolutionary Approach to Recruiting & Selecting People with Both Tremendous Skill & Superb Attitude.' He's also this week's guest on Salary Talk, and tells Aaron and Wendy the hard truth about the way companies hire employees today -- that most of the standard approaches to hiring are wrong.Past employment at Fortune 500 companies ... view article details

Q: I took some time off this year, and I think it affected my performance review. I got only a 2 percent raise. Does this mean I am a problem employee?A: The dreaded performance evaluation happens every year. You hope against hope that the project you completed is recognized. You also hope the extra work you put in is also recognized. But to your dismay, you are told that in spite of your hard work, you are eligible for a 2 percent increase, which after taxes isn't much.Without knowing the details of your situation, I could paint a typical scenario.During your review, your manager informed you... view article details

Q.I was promised by my supervisor, but not in writing, that the company would increase my pay by 10 percent. When I got my raise, it was only 3 percent. I questioned my supervisor, who said she never promised me more. We talked it over and compromised at a 7 percent raise. It is now a month later and I have yet to see any increase on my paycheck. How can I get the raise I thought I was promised?A. In this age of the Internet it is always a good idea to send an email confirming any conversation you have with your supervisor or your human resources department. This way, if you misunderstood what... view article details