I had no experience with negotiating. I felt that Google had the upper hand since they have more data and I need the job more than they need me. I didn’t know what to expect from the negotiation and was unsure how I would respond to my recruiter’s questions.

The $3000 upfront fee was my biggest concern about hiring Josh. I was worried that maybe Google would be unwilling to negotiate or perhaps even rescind the offer and I would end up with nothing. I understand that this is extremely unlikely, but it was still a fear that I had.

Working with Josh went well! I ended up negotiating more equity (and it more than covered the coaching fee). Although Google was unable to budge as much as I expected, I know that I got the best possible offer. It was the first time I was able to increase my total compensation, so that’s a big stepping stone as I know I have a long career ahead and will need to do this again at some point. I learned about negotiation strategy and how to handle this situation in the future. I also found that I learned more about the value I will bring to the company and what I’m valued within the market.

I liked that Josh viewed things from Google’s perspective when deciding how to negotiate and what to ask for. I also liked that he was strategizing all along and was prepared for whatever scenarios could come up. I would definitely recommend Josh to other software engineers that have offers from tech companies.