How To Ask For A Raise? Tips Depend On Your Industry...And Boss's Mood

If you’ve been pining for a raise, you’re not alone. Almost 90 percent of Americans believed they deserved more money, according to a survey from staffing firm Robert Half. However, many of those people are too scared to ask for one.

In fact, 32 percent of workers would rather clean the house than ask for a raise; 13 percent would rather just give up their position and look for a job somewhere else; 7 percent said they’d rather get a root canal at the dentist; and 6 percent would rather be audited by the Internal Revenue Service.

Read: What Is A Fair Salary? How To Make Sure You're Getting Paid A Decent Wage

Needless to say, asking for a raise isn’t everyone’s favorite pastime. It can put you in a vulnerable position and drain the confidence of even the most cocky employee. But there’s good news: Strategic planning can help — a lot.

Below are some factors to consider about when to ask for that raise:

1. Your company is rolling in dough — or at least, financially stable. If you ask for a raise when your company is in the red, even if you deserve one for your work, then your higher-ups simply might not have the resources to give you more money.

Read: Best Jobs For The Future: If You Want To Get Hired, Look Into Renewable Energy, Health Care

2. You ask for a raise in line with your industry’s salary expectations. The base salary increase across all industries was 2.9 percent, according to estimates from consulting firm Mercer. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that you should ask for a 2.9 percent increase — do your research. What are other people in your industry making? How prone is your industry to pay raises?

3. Your job description has changed. If you’re taking on a heavier workload or more responsibility, it should go without saying that you deserve more money. But sometimes it doesn’t go without saying. When that happens, it’s totally fair game for you to bring it up yourself.

"You can pitch your boss on a salary increase if you've taken on a big new responsibility that makes the organization money or saves money for them,” Liz Ryan, Founder and CEO of Human Workplace, told Forbes. If somebody quit or got laid off and you took over their duties, you've got a case to make, also."

4. It’s a few months before your annual review. Most budgets are decided three to four months before employers review employees’ work performance, so this is a good time to bring up your own financial concerns.

5. And, yes. Make sure your boss is in a good mood.

"Have a high dose of empathy about what's happening in the life and circumstances of the boss at this particular moment," Jane T. Schroeder, a career counselor and coach with a background in human resources, told U.S. News & World Report.

In other words, it’s important to remember that — believe it or not — your boss is human, too.