Salary negotiations for techies
I'm having my review today and I am not making enough to live on.  Every month, after mortgage on the house, modest car payment, and insurance for wife and two kids, I dip into savings to pay the bills.<p>It's already too late to "plant the seeds" for a big raise, so I'm anticipating some little 1% raise today at my review.<p>I had my chance a few weeks ago, when I stayed late to confirm and fix a bug that would have cost us a $2M contract, and everybody knows what I did and how important it was.  Still, without me actually pushing for a big raise, I know it won't happen.  It's a small company and money is not wasted.  To pay me a big raise I didn't ask for would be throwing money away.<p>So why didn't I ask?  I think because I don't want the commitment a big raise would impose on me to stay indefinitely, and I don't want to be comfortable.  I like feeling the pinch of money, as it keeps me motivated to work on my startup ideas.  If I allowed myself to get too comfortable, I fear it might not be the best for me, long term.