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Back Off, Recruiters -- You're Not Getting My Salary History

This article is more than 8 years old.

The world is changing fast, and some people are keeping up with the changes better than others are!

Recruiters are seeing their world rocked by new forces from recruiting via social media to the disintegration of full-time employment altogether.

Some of them are rolling with the changes and some are struggling. You can tell the change-resistant recruiters by their bluster and brass.

They'll call you on the phone or email you when they find your LinkedIn profile. They'll say "I have a great job I want to talk to you about."

You'll say "Great. I'd love to hear about it."

A polite recruiter will say "Here's the role I'm working on." They will lay it out. They will tell you about the opportunity, because you're investing the time to chat with them and you might be interested in the job.

An impolite, me-first recruiter will ask "What are you getting paid now?" They will vet you when they should be selling you!

You don't have to give up your salary info -- either your current earnings or your past compensation. It's none of a recruiter's business. It's none of an employer's business, either!

You can say "Here's the compensation range I'm focusing on in my job search."

Some recruiters will demand to see a paystub or your W-2. You can politely invite those folks to go fly a kite. It's a new day, and talent is in the driver's seat.

If you don't believe that talent is in the driver's seat, Google the term "talent shortage."

There are plenty of people who will tell you that employers hold all the cards, but that's a blatant lie!

It is an important lie to tell job-seekers if you want to keep them humble and compliant, and sadly, lots of recruiters find it advantageous to do that.

You have to be ready for those guys, because they will try to destroy your self-esteem along the way to softening you up to take a crappy  job offer.

Don't fall for it! Not everybody deserves your talents. Only the people who get you, deserve you -- and you're the first person who needs to get the memo.