Know-How Exchange : Other

Regardless of what you would like them to do, they've asked you for a suggestion/recommendation for your compensation, and you probably ought to respond with an honest answer about what it is you want.

If possible, I'd present it first in general terms -- not specific numbers. Get agreement, if you can, to some basic principles or guidelines. Once they've agreed to those, then you can put specific numbers against it.

You will need to examine yourself regardless of how the negotiations unfold. What are you willing to take? What are the non-negotiable elements (if any)? If you don't do this on your own, you'll never know whether their offer is acceptable or not.

My suggestion would be that you stop treating this as a win/lose negotiation. Find a way to come up with something that's fair for both of you and go for win/win.

There's a whole chapter on salary discussions in The Potato Chip Difference : How to apply leading edge marketing strategies to landing the job you want. You probably ought to read it before you shoot yourself in the foot. (Available at Amazon.com and bn.com, through most bookstores in the United States, or at the website www.potatochipdifference.com .)