Am I the only one who thought salary negotiation was mostly about bluffing?

I was reading a report from a hiring data site last month and saw that 70% of managers have a budget range that's higher than their first offer. They literally expect you to ask for more. I found this on a blog post from a recruiter in Austin. My old boss would always give the lowest number first and act like it was firm. Now I know he was just playing the game. It makes me wonder how much money I've left on the table by not pushing back. Has anyone else had a manager actually tell you the real top number they could pay?

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1 Comment

robinmason6h ago

I mean, maybe it's just me but I've never seen a manager actually say their top number. That report sounds a bit too clean. In my experience, a lot of them just shut down if you push too hard, like they take it personally.