I'm eighteen years old and I'm working at my first job. I have been here for six months. Understandably, I was initially offered a "less than market value" salary due to my lack of experience/education.

Well, we're now seven months into the job and I have been quite literally working as hard as I possibly can. It paid off. Last month I was offered a 20% raise in salary. The problem is, that 20% raise has only now put me at the bottom of the acceptable market value for my exact position/skills.

I believe my skills speak for themselves and I belong in the average salary range for my skill set. I have an interview with another company today. When I am asked what my current salary is, my thinking is to avoid answering it directly (as is often recommended in my research) and instead bring up the raise I was given in January. Would this positively or negatively impact my chances of obtaining a salary more appropriate for my position, experience, and skill set?

In other words, I'm imagining my response being: "I would rather not discuss exact numbers because I believe my abilities speak for themselves, but if it helps I did receive a salary increase of over 20% after six months on the job."