The coaching cost was a concern for me. Josh’s result fee makes sense, but the $3,000 service fee is not inexpensive.

It was well worth it. I got exactly what I wanted. Josh helped me negotiate an extra $3,000 in base salary to hit the cap, $40,000 in extra sign-on over two years, and around $32,000 in extra equity over four years. That’s roughly $84,000 in extra income over four years.

It went so smoothly that part of me thought, did I really need to hire Josh? But then I realized that of course I did. I had no idea what I was doing or how to frame the counter offer or how to act after they came with theirs. Having the offer pulled for asking for too much was a huge worry of mine, especially since I had no competing offers. Josh understood where I was coming from and helped put me at ease. He helped me overcome my hesitation to counteroffer and basically assured me that the recruiter expected it.

Working with Josh made me confident that I got a good deal and that I wasn’t lowballed. Had I kept my original offer, I would’ve always had a small chip on my shoulder that I got played. Not having that feeling is almost priceless. I also now have a better understanding of the negotiating process and the confidence to handle this myself next time.