What to Say When Asked About Salary in a Job Interview (Without Underselling Yourself) Interview
- Latoya Baldwin
- Aug 2, 2025
- 4 min read
Updated: Jan 27
Few interview questions make smart, qualified women tense faster than this one:
“What are your salary expectations?”
Not because you do not know your worth.
But because you know how much can go wrong in a single sentence.
Say too much and you risk pricing yourself out.
Say too little and you anchor yourself lower than you deserve.
Hesitate and suddenly the power in the conversation shifts.
This question is not small. And it is never casual.
Why This Question Matters More Than You’ve Been Told
Salary questions are often framed as awkward formalities.
They are not.
They are leverage checkpoints.
Hiring managers ask about salary to assess far more than a number. They are listening for:
• How you value your experience
• How you handle pressure
• Whether you understand your positioning in the market
• How easy or risky you will be to negotiate with later
That means your response shapes the rest of the interview, even if the conversation moves on.
If this question already makes your stomach tighten, this is where having language prepared matters.
The Mistake Most Women Make Before They Even Answer
Most women approach this question trying not to mess it up.
That mindset alone puts you on defense.
When you are focused on avoiding the wrong answer, you usually default to one of these responses:
• Giving a number too early “just to get it over with”
• Deflecting awkwardly and hoping it does not come up again
• Over-explaining your reasoning to sound reasonable and flexible
• Undershooting because you plan to negotiate later
All of these feel safe in the moment.
Most of them quietly cost you leverage.
What Not to Say When Asked About Salary
Let’s be honest.
These responses sound polite and cooperative, but they work against you.
“I’m flexible and open to whatever you think is fair.”
“I’m really more focused on the opportunity than the number.”
“I’d be comfortable somewhere around X, but I’m negotiable.”
The problem is not your tone.
The problem is what these answers signal.
They tell the employer you are unsure of your value, willing to anchor low, or prepared to let them set the terms.
Knowing what not to say helps.
But knowing that alone does not protect you when the question catches you off guard.
That is why having exact phrasing ready ahead of time changes everything.
Download it here and use it before your next interview.
What to Say Instead (And Why One Good Line Is Not Enough)
A strong salary response does three things at once:
It protects your leverage
It buys you time
It keeps the conversation strategic instead of transactional
A solid response might sound like this:
“I’m excited about this role and want to make sure we’re aligned overall. I’d love to learn more about the responsibilities and expectations before locking in a number. Can you share the range budgeted for this position?”
This works because it redirects the conversation without shutting it down.
But here is the part most advice leaves out.
Knowing one good answer does not mean you will deliver it cleanly under pressure.
If you freeze, rush, or second-guess yourself, the moment passes and the leverage goes with it.
That is not a confidence issue.
It is a preparation and structure issue.
Pause Here for a Moment
If you have ever Googled this question more than once, this is important.
The problem is not that you forget what to say.
The problem is that you are being asked to improvise in a high-stakes moment without a system.
Salary conversations are emotional.
They trigger fear of being judged, rejected, or dismissed.
That is why scripts matter. They remove emotion from the moment and replace it with clarity.
That is exactly what my Salary Script is designed to do.
The Bigger Truth About Salary Questions
Salary discussions rarely stand alone.
They are shaped by everything that happens earlier in the interview.
If your value is not clearly positioned, salary becomes a defensive conversation.
If your impact is obvious, salary becomes a confirmation.
This is why some women negotiate easily while others feel anxious even bringing it up.
It is not confidence.
It is positioning.
Why Salary Advice Alone Isn’t Enough
Most salary advice focuses on the moment of the question.
But hiring decisions are made across the entire interview.
How you frame your experience.
How you talk about results.
How you demonstrate judgment and leadership.
All of that influences how much room you have to negotiate.
If you want salary conversations to feel calm instead of tense, you have to control the narrative long before the number comes up.
That is what I teach inside Interview Mastery™.
If You Want to Stop Guessing
Here are your next best steps, depending on where you are right now.
If you want immediate language you can use the next time this question comes up, start with the Salary Script. It gives you clear phrasing so you do not negotiate against yourself.
If you want to master the entire interview process so salary discussions start from a place of leverage, Interview Mastery™ shows you how to do that step by step.
You do not need more tips.
You need a system you can rely on when the pressure is on.
And this is where that changes.
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