This simple phrase can get you up to 20% more in compensation, according to a negotiation coach

• Jacob Warwick suggests negotiating salaries, even in a tough job market.
• He said the simple phrase "What's the chance there's a little more here?" can result in a 5-20% raise.
• Warwick advises candidates to act as consultants, exploring the full scope of the role during interviews.

It's still worth negotiating your salary — even in this economy.

Executive negotiation coach Jacob Warwick guides clients through high-stakes negotiations, transitions, and exits. He said the job market is drastically different from 2021 and 2022, when it favored employees. Nowadays, with economic uncertainty rampant and quit rates hovering near decade lows, Warwick said some people feel that you should be grateful for any job offer.

"The problem with that mindset is it lowers your expectations, and it squelches creativity," Warwick told Business Insider. "When you're making the assumption that this is how it's going to be, you're naturally negotiating against yourself."

Warwick said that even in a tough market, or if you're fresh out of college without much experience, there are still ways to explore whether there's more on the table. He said it's always better to ask — and he's seen one simple phrase result in anything from 5% to 20% more in offers: "What's the chance that there's a little more here?"

The phrase is a reminder that the terms aren't "set in stone," he said, and that everything in a job post is up for negotiation.

Before Warwick took up executive coaching, he says he used this same strategy in his own career negotiations. Warwick said he didn't go to college, but every job he worked in required a college degree. He said one of the positions he once applied for required a Master's degree, with a preference for a doctorate. He still landed the role.

"I ignore the salary benchmarks; I ignore the job description; I ignore all of that," Warwick said, adding that he tries to have a conversation about what the role entails and how he can most useful to the employer.

Warwick said that posing the question doesn't always work, but a couple of employers were willing to take a chance on him, and that made the many attempts worth it.

Expanding the role

Warwick's golden question doesn't just relate to whether there's more financial wiggle room. It's also a way to probe whether the role itself could be bigger. Job descriptions, he said, often undersell what a position actually becomes.

By asking, "What's the chance there's a little more to this that you need?" candidates can surface opportunities to take on greater impact — and, in turn, increase their value.

He encourages clients to approach interviews like consultants. Instead of answering questions, candidates should dig into what the company really needs by asking questions about whether the scope of the role could be bigger, or if there are other possibilities. That also means actively offering ideas, connections, and ways they can contribute, rather than waiting to be evaluated.

Once the employer starts opening up about their needs and the role begins to take clearer shape, that's the moment to pivot. Warwick said candidates should always express enthusiasm and gratitude for the opportunity, but note that the scope seems to have grown, and ask whether there's flexibility in the salary to reflect it.