This section will get you to think about what is suitable remuneration. It is an important factor to consider and researching what is the ‘going rate’ in other companies and with similar roles. 

How much is enough?

It is important to work out what you want in terms of salary. But when deciding on what is the lowest figure you would be happy with it is important to know what you would need to live on.

Write a list of all of the expenses that you would need to cover in a year and how much per annum they cost you. Some things to include in your budget are:

• Mortgage
• Utility bills
• Savings
• Groceries
• Holidays
• Car expenses
• Petrol
• Insurance – health, home, car and life
• Membership Fees
• HECS, PELS or HELP repayments
• Superannuation

If you are relocating to a new city or even country consider:

• Moving expenses
• Cost of living
• Support from the company
• Payback’ policies
• Cost of travel home

Use this information to figure out what you could or could not live on.

The Australian Tax Office Website (http://ato.gov.au) contains useful calculators to helps you work out tax implications of salary. 

Additionally, CareerOne (http://payrise.careerone.com.au) has a simple to use calculator to help you figure out your potential weekly, monthly or annual earnings after tax payments.