Salary Talk

Quick -- what's your most important business skill? Give up? It's your personality. And until you understand what personality type you are and how you can successfully mesh with others, you'll never truly reach your maximum potential...

Did you know the average 4-year undergraduate has $18,625 in student loan debt that will end up costing $25,720 between now and 2022? Being saddled with that kind of debt often leads to putting off major life decisions such as getting...

Suzanne Lucas -- who is also known as the Evil Hr Lady -- wrote a CBS Money Watch column titled "Why I Hate Salary.com's 'What's a Mom Worth?' Survey," in which she vehemently disagreed with our annual Mother's Day tradition. Lucas made...

David Guarino and Rachel Koch are part of a team of developers who created www.closethewagegap.com, in response to the U.S. Department of Labor's call to action in January. The challenge was developed in conjunction with President Obama's...

At first glance, coaching girls youth soccer doesn't have anything to do with running a multimillion-dollar company. But in his more than two decades of coaching, Paul Levy has taught (and learned) lessons on the soccer field that directly...

Najak is doing what he's wanted to do since the age of 15 -- producing a television show. He is the senior producer of live and remote broadcasts for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's esteemed Hockey Night in Canada, which is the...

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...

Jim Hopkinson, author of "The Salary Tutor: Learn the Secrets of Negotiation No One Ever Taught You," is this week's guest on Salary Talk, and he's dispensing some great advice on how to prepare for -- and succeed -- in getting hired with...

Rohit Bhargava is this week's "Salary Talk" guest and the author of the recently released book "Likeonomics: The Unexpected Truth Behind Earning Trust, Influencing Behavior, and Inspiring Action." Bhargava contends that likeability has...

"I'll get to it later." Who among us hasn't uttered those fateful words? It could be a daily occurrence or perhaps it only happens on big projects or the weekly task you despise most. But however procrastination finds its way into our...

Would you study and memorize all of your friends' contact information even though you had a working smartphone? How about doing the dishes by hand despite an operational dishwasher in your kitchen? Of course you wouldn't, because both of...

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...

Getting ahead at work and becoming a leader isn't just about hard work. You have to be able to relate to people, read them and their emotions and win them over. And that goes for people above you and those you eventually hope to have...

Ever wonder why people do the things they do? This week's podcast guest, Kevin Hogan, has devoted himself to that very question. And the answers he's come up with are nothing short of astounding. In his book, The Science of Influence: How to Get Anyone to Say 'Yes' in 8 Minutes or Less, Hogan shares his personal system of persuasion and lets you in on subtle hints that put you in a better position to get what you want. From reducing resistance to an idea to making someone feel automatically comfortable in your presence, listen to this podcast for Hogan's simple yet effective ways to influence others.

You’re probably in a fantasy football league. If your league is really competitive, you’ve probably spent a lot of time researching the best players for your team by buying magazines, studying depth charts, analyzing position rankings, or soliciting advice from experts on Twitter. If all this is true, you’ve probably heard of Dave Richard. As the Senior Fantasy Football Writer for CBSSports.com, Dave has a job most sports fans and stat-obsessed fantasy football geeks envy---he gets paid to watch professional football and then discuss it. In this week’s special Dream Jobs edition of "Salary Talk," Aaron teams up with Salary.com Product Manager Patrick Siska to interview Dave and find out how someone ends up writing about fantasy football for a living. Find out how he got the job and hear tips on how you can do the same.

The number of women in the workforce is increasing, more women than men are earning college degrees and the number of female executives continues to rise. Yet women are still only earning an average of 77 cents on the dollar compared to men. Evelyn Murphy is a former Massachusetts Lt. Governor who is now president of the WAGE (Women Are Getting Even) Project in Boston. She joins Aaron and Wendy on this week's edition of Salary Talk, and discusses the all-important topic of gender discrimination as it relates to the wage gap in America. If you're a woman---or especially if you're a man who supervises female employees---this podcast is an enlightening look at how we intentionally and subconsciously allow the wage gap to persist, and also what steps we can take to fix it.

Think back to your biggest accomplishment. The one you're most proud of. Whether you lost 100 lbs or successfully ran a marathon, there's a high probability you achieved your goal because it was something you chose to do that you had a personal attachment to. Mark Murphy, author of "Hard Goals: The Secret to Getting From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be," said too many people fail to achieve their goals because of apathy and a broken system. If your friends and family are the ones telling you you need to lose weight, that's their goal. And if your boss sets some arbitrary benchmark for you without consulting you first, that number is looked at with scorn and derision. But using Murphy's HARD (Heartfelt, Animated, Required, Difficult) goals system, people develop an intense emotional connection to the goals and are more likely to succeed. Mark talks to Wendy and Aaron in this week's podcast and gives some tips on how to better structure both your personal and professional goals so you'll push yourself out of your comfort zone and actually care about the results, instead of quitting in frustration or apathy a month from now.

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.

So you work for an idiot. Now what? Dr. John Hoover literally wrote the book on working for idiot bosses, and this week he has tips for identifying idiot bosses, addressing the real issues and forming a working ...

This week, Aaron and Wendy interview Vicky Oliver, who wrote the book "Bad Bosses, Crazy Coworkers and Other Office Idiots: 201 Smart Ways to Handle the Toughest People Issues." And in doing so, she provided employees everywhere with a reference guide for the various categories of horrible bosses, exasperating coworkers and just about every office problem in existence. She identifies issues, gives solutions and helps you figure out how to save yourself some anxiety in the workplace.

Continuing with our Dream Jobs series, Aaron and Wendy talk to Ed Glebus, who works as an executive Chef on the west coast. Glebus is the general manager and executive chef for CulinArt, a corporate dining company in San Diego. Glebus oversees all food service for the telecommunications company Qualcomm, cooking and serving more than 2,000 meals a day for 12,000 employees in seven locations. Listen to Glebus' journey from his first days as a cook at D'Angelo sub shop to his years spent earning valuable on-the-job experience working at restaurants across the United States. Find out what it takes to be an executive chef, listen to some kitchen horror stories and get some free advice from a professional.

In this podcast, Karsan talks to Aaron and Wendy (the hosts of Salary Talk) about the significant implications engagement has on employees and businesses. With smartphones and the Internet, the days of punching a time clock and leaving your work at the door when you go home are over, Karsan says. Instead of a Career-Life Balance, most people are headed towards a Career-Life Blend, in which your work and home lives are forever intertwined. That's why employers need to know that a bad work situation can spill over at home and create marital angst, poor parenting and other problems. The employee then takes those personal problems to the office, at which point productivity suffers, the bottom line decreases and eventually you have to pay the turnover costs associated with hiring a new person for the job.

Are you uncomfortable in group settings? Do you abhor public speaking? Do you have better ideas than the loudmouths in your office, yet you watch helplessly as they get promoted while you're barely noticed working silently in your cubicle?

Mike Rowe, host of the Discovery Channel's emmy-nominated show "Dirty Jobs.," talks to Wendy and Aaron about something vital to this country's sustainability. Motivated by his grandfather's work ethic, Mike has set out to address the nation's aversion to hard work, the steady decline in the trades and the skilled labor shortage that is crippling this country...

Everyone knows men make more money than women. But perhaps, at least in part, it's because they ask for it and women don't. Linda Babcock, co-author of "Women Don't Ask: The High Cost of Avoiding Negotiation and Positive Strategies for Change," joins Aaron and Wendy on this week's Salary Talk and talks openly and honestly about why women don't negotiate, why negotiating their own self-worth makes them anxious and what they can do to fix it. If you're a woman who falls into this category, or just as important if you're a manager with female employees, Linda offers some incredibly important tips and strategies to better ensure equality between the sexes. This podcast may be about women, but it's got something to offer everyone and Linda is a nationally renowned expert on gender studies.

While people might not recognize Jennifer Hale’s name or picture, as soon as she starts talking it usually clicks. Most animation and video game aficionados who hear Hale’s voice quickly realize she has been involved in (what seems like) every meaningful video game in the last 15 years, as well as countless cartoons, movies, TV series and commercials. Hale's IMDB resume is more than a dozen pages long, but she is known best for her role as the voice of the female Commander Shepard in the Mass Effect trilogy. She also plays two major roles in the much-anticipated video game Star Wars: The Old Republic, and voices a character in the recently released game Gears of War 3.

Money is power. Like it or not, if you want to succeed at work you have to be able to run with the big dogs and rub elbows with the super wealthy. If you want to be a millionaire, you have to look and act like a millionaire. Without a millionaire's bankroll. Enter Vicky Oliver, author of the newly released book The Millionaire's Handbook: How to Look and Act Like a Millionaire Even If You're Not, who has devoted an entire book to taking on a millionaire's persona on a shoestring budget...

Have you ever felt ambushed during a business meeting? Or have you either clammed up or lashed out at a boss when unexpected criticisms come your way during a performance review? If so, chances are you were in a "Crucial Conversation." And you blew it. Kerry Patterson, a New York Times bestselling writer and co-author of "Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High," says crucial conversations happen on a near daily basis both at work and at home. The trick, as Patterson tells Aaron and Wendy on this week's episode of Salary Talk, is to recognize them when they happen and act accordingly.

Times are tough, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be paid what you're worth. Robin Pinkley, an expert in corporate negotiations and author of the book "Get Paid What You're Worth: The Expert Negotiators' Guide to Salary and Compensation," has done the research and crunched the numbers. The result: failure to negotiate your starting salary could translate into $1 to $2 million in lost revenue over the course of one's career. Aaron and Wendy talk to Robin about when and how to negotiate salary, tackling cultural differences during negotiations and how to deal with employers who request salary expectations up front.

How many times have you gone for a job interview only to find out dozens---and sometimes hundreds---of other people with similar backgrounds and experience have applied for the same position? You know you need to stand out to be noticed, but you don't know how to make it happen. The answer, according to William Arruda, is personal branding. Arruda, author of "Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building Your Brand" and a leading authority on using branding to advance your career, says the trick to setting yourself apart from the field is to figure out where your strengths are and accentuate the heck out of them. His tips on everything from maintaining a positive online presence to harnessing your passions to get ahead will not only help your career, but also your confidence in general. If you want free tips on getting ahead, getting the job and feeling better about yourself, this podcast is must-listen material!

What do employees REALLY want most? It's a question Dr. Jack Wiley, executive director of the Kenexa High Performance Institute, has spent more than 25 years researching. And on today's episode of Salary Talk, Aaron and Wendy talk to Jack about his new book "RESPECT: Delivering Results By Giving Employees What They Really Want," which will be released this month. Jack has spent more than two decades studying employee engagement surveys from more than 200,000 workers, with input from companies in more than two dozen countries. Satisfied employees are productive employees, so find out why it pays to know what workers want and give it to them.

If you're a fast-tracker striving for career advancement like a heat-seeking missile then this is a podcast you can't afford to miss. On this week's episode of Salary Talk, Aaron flies solo in this interview with Donald Asher, author of "Who Gets Promoted, Who Doesn't and Why" and "Cracking the Hidden Job Market," who deals exclusively with career professionals who aren't happy unless they're earning a promotion every 12-18 months. You'll find out why raises aren't about past performance, being indispensable isn't a good thing and discover why talent is a distant second to timing. Asher's insight into the corporate culture of raises and promotions could have you earning more in no time.

Are you on the verge of negotiating the terms of a new job? Or maybe you're trying to get a raise, but have no idea how to go about it? On this week's episode of Salary Talk, Aaron and Wendy chat with Jack Chapman, a nationally renowned career advisor, who has written a book that will hold your hand as you go step-by-step through the negotiation process. Negotiating Your Salary: How to Make $1000 a Minute gives you five hard and fast rules for negotiating an offer or promotion, and Jack shares invaluable tips on how to get what you want at every stage of the negotiation process.

On this week's episode of Salary Talk Aaron and Wendy chat with Stuart Diamond, the Pulitzer Prize winning former journalist turned Wharton Business School professor who literally wrote the book on negotiation when he penned the New York Times bestselling book Getting More last year. Tune in to take advantage of Diamond's invaluable advice on everything from asking for a raise to getting your toddler to go to bed on time.

Our inaugural interview is with Katy Piotrowski, M.Ed., author of the Career Coward's book series. She has been a career counselor in private practice in Fort Collins, Colorado for more than 15 years. She has a master's of education degree in counseling and career development and has helped thousands of individuals achieve success in the job hunt and beyond through a variety of career counseling and support tools. Katy has conducted many workshops to help job seekers overcome their job hunt fears and succeed in finding a career that is right for them. She is the author of the weekly "On the Job" career advice column in the Ft. Collins Coloradoan and has quickly become one of the most sought-after experts on the topics of job search and career change.