Is your salary growth jeopardizing your career growth?

"What the hell do you mean I should take on more responsibilities regardless of salary hike?!! I am not doing social service!"

This is the question my coaching clients ask me when I tell them to take on as many responsibilities as possible, regardless whether their salary is increasing or not.

I am not averse to asking for salary hikes. In fact, you should. And many people lack the assertiveness to do so. And should work on it. 

The mistake is in linking the salary hike to your responsibilities. Because they are not linked. And seeing links where none exist can cause you to take incorrect decisions and move in wrong directions. 

Still not clear? Imagine you join a gym. Whether you like exercising or not, you have chosen to spend 1 hour there anyway. 

As you grow stronger, healthier - your gym owner offers you money to stay in his gym. You being in his gym raises the overall atmosphere, your results bring in more customers. Overall, your 1 hour in the gym brings him benefits. 

You are happy to accept the money. Both parties are happy. 

Slowly, 6 months pass. You get used to lifting the same wights you have been lifting..it becomes easier.

Would you pick up bigger weights? Or would you wait for in increase in your compensation?

Let us say the bigger weights are locked in a special room? The owner offers you to the key to that room. 

Would you happily accept the keys or would you say "I won't grow my muscles unless you offer me a pay hike?"

Do you see what I am getting at?

The reason he chose to offer YOU money among the other available candidates is of course a function of your performance, but the AMOUNT he offers depends on many other factors like availability of people like you, their readiness to join his gym, market rates for such people etc.  

You might be the strongest body builder in the city, but if his gym is not doing well, or if there is no demand for gyms in the city at all - there is no way he can offer you a higher salary - even if he WANTS to. It is not the reflection of his "appreciation" for you.

On the other hand, the weights you can lift help you and only you. They are the only indicator of your REAL growth. It is for your sake than his sake. The muscles that you build will be yours - regardless of the money. 

Hence you will try to make the best of your time in that gym - regardless of the money. If you lift the same weights for to long, it is your muscles that will deplete. The loss is yours, not his.   

The money you get for them is important for fulfilling your survival and status needs - but if you treat it as a reflection of your GROWTH, then you are fooling yourself. You might be getting paid higher because of unavailability of other options, and because the market is growing. Even if you are a mediocre performer. Don't be surprised if you suddenly find yourself stagnating or being replaced one day.  

By now, you would have guessed that in the context of your career, these weights are your job responsibilities. 

Salaries are usually a function of market demand/supply gaps. This is how salaries balloon up in a 'high demand' industry - and people flock to them. Which is fine, until they confuse salary growth withe their own growth. As the industry matures, supply of people increases, expectation levels go up - then people feel betrayed when the honeymoon period ends and salary hikes evaporate.

They feel 'under appreciated' - whereas the salaries had nothing to do with them. It was never personal. 

So if you are getting better salary hikes, even promotions but not bigger responsibilities - you need to be much more concerned. 

On the other hand, your boss can be bad at appreciation and even worse at offering better compensation - but if he gives you greater responsibilities - it is the best sign of appreciation of your capabilities. Grab it with both hands.

Even if you are not getting salary hikes - your muscles are yours. You are not at the mercy of your 'network' or 'market demand'. Ask for hikes. Why not? But if you don't get it - remember it has nothing to do with your performance. It is not your loss, but your company's. 

While most others busy using and confusing the good market climate and "30% annual salary hikes" with their actual growth - you are busy actually sweating it out, learning, pushing yourself to the edge of your comfort zone, and constantly growing.

More importantly, if you think you need to lift bigger weights, but they not have higher weights to offer - is it 'healthy' for you to stay? Are you growing, or simply becoming 'obese'?

?Are you jeopardizing your own career? Even if you are offered a higher salary? Are you trading your growth for a higher salary?

Are you trading your growth for a higher salary?

So while getting salary growth is great, remember to not lose sight of your real growth. No matter what company you are in and what salary you make, take advantage of the "work gym" and put in your best. Grow your muscles as much as possible! For your own sake!

What are your thoughts? Do you have other opinions? Do you disagree? Do let me know in the comments.

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Vijayraj is a technologist who believes in working with purpose. He is a coach and developing the human potential is a passion. He has 50,000+ followers on Quora with his writings on passion, success and mind published in international magazines. He is author of a book and has delivered 3 TEDx talks.