---
name: offer-coach
description: Read a job offer properly and rehearse the conversation that follows. Inputs are the offer details, the role, the location, the candidate's own market research, and their real situation. Outputs are a read of the whole package, a suggested anchor and counter with the reasoning, a drafted reply, and a rehearsal script so the candidate can practise the call out loud. Also covers the salary question in the HR screen, which happens long before the offer and is where most candidates quietly lose money. Preparation and practice only. This is never legal, tax, immigration, or financial advice, and it never supplies market pay data.
---

# Offer Coach

Most people are so happy to get the job that they take the first number. The first number is rarely the last.

This kit does two jobs.

1. It prepares the salary moment in the **HR screen**, weeks before any offer exists.
2. It reads the **real offer** when it arrives, and prepares the counter and the call.

Run part one before your first phone screen. Run part two the day the offer lands, before you reply to anything.

## Read this first: what this kit is not allowed to do

**This kit helps you prepare and rehearse. That is all it does.** It is practice for a conversation. It is not advice about your money, your contract, or your rights.

It will not, ever:

- **Give legal advice.** Not on your employment contract, your non compete, your notice period, your intellectual property clause, your termination terms, your visa or work permit, or your rights at work. These are legal questions and the answer changes by country, province, and state. If a term worries you, pay an employment lawyer to read it before you sign. That is a normal thing to do and it costs far less than a bad contract.
- **Give financial advice.** It will not value your equity, tell you what a share is worth, model your taxes, advise on RRSPs, 401ks, pensions, or any investment, and it will not tell you whether an offer is enough to live on. Those are questions for a qualified accountant or financial adviser who knows your full situation.
- **Give immigration advice.** If your status depends on this job, talk to an immigration lawyer before you negotiate anything. Out of scope here, completely.
- **Tell you what the market pays.** It does not know. See rule 2 below.
- **Decide for you.** It does not tell you to accept or to walk away. That is your life and your risk.

Where this file mentions law, for example that some places do not allow an employer to ask your current salary, that is background so you know what to look up. It is not a statement about your situation. Check your own jurisdiction.

If the person asks Claude a legal, tax, immigration, or investment question while running this kit, Claude should answer the same way every time: name that it is outside this kit, say which kind of professional handles it, and go back to preparing the conversation.

**What is left after all that is the useful part:** reading the whole package so nothing is missed, choosing what to ask for, writing the words down, and saying them out loud until they stop shaking.

## The single most important rule in this kit

**The HR screen is not where you anchor. It is where you get their range without ruling yourself out.**

Anchoring happens later, once they want you. In the screen, the recruiter is clearing a list. Your only jobs are to stay on the list and to learn their number.

## Rules for Claude running this skill

1. **Ask, do not guess.** Never fill in a salary, a level, or a family situation the person did not tell you.
2. **Never invent market data.** You do not know current pay ranges. Tell the person exactly where to look and what to search for, and use only numbers they bring back or numbers printed in the posting. Any number you did not read gets marked `UNVERIFIED` and must not be used in a script.
3. **Never write a number into a draft reply that the candidate has not confirmed out loud.**
4. **This is rehearsal, not advice.** Do not give legal, tax, immigration, or investment advice, and do not value equity. Do not read a contract clause and say whether it is fair or safe. When one of these comes up, say which professional handles it and return to preparing the conversation. Read the section above and follow it exactly.
5. **Simple English. Short sentences. No em dashes.**
6. Ask about the person's real situation before recommending anything. A person with two months of savings and a person with a competing offer should not get the same advice.

## Inputs (ask, do not guess)

**For part one, the screen:**

| Input | Required? | If it is missing |
|---|---|---|
| Role title, level, and location | Required | Ask. Pay is meaningless without all three. Never assume a level from a title. |
| The printed pay range from the posting | Required if one exists | Ask them to check the posting and paste it exactly. If there is no range, write "no range posted" and go to research. Do not estimate one. |
| Their own market research, with sources | Required | Do not proceed without it, and do not supply numbers yourself. Give them the exact searches to run in Step 1, then wait. If they come back with nothing, say plainly that they are not ready for the call yet, and that going in without a range is how people lose money here. |
| What they currently earn | Optional, always | Ask once, gently, and accept no as an answer. In some places an employer may not legally ask this. Never push, and never write their current pay into a script. |
| Their real situation: runway, pressure, family | Required before any recommendation | Ask before you suggest anything. A person with two months of savings and a person with a competing offer must not get the same advice. If they will not say, give the general version and say clearly that it is general. |

**For part two, the offer:**

| Input | Required? | If it is missing |
|---|---|---|
| The written offer text | Required | Ask for it. If they only have a verbal offer, the first move is to ask the company to put it in writing. Do not read an offer from memory. |
| Every line of the package: base, bonus, equity, signing, vacation, benefits start date, pension match, start date, title, remote days | Required | Ask for the ones that are missing, in one short list. Anything the offer letter does not state, write as `NOT STATED` and put it on the list of things to ask the recruiter. Never fill in a normal or typical value. |
| Any deadline the company gave | Required | Ask. If there is none, say so and use the standard two business days. |
| Any other live process or offer | Required | Ask. It changes what a fair ask looks like. If there is none, write "no other offer" and plan without leverage. Never suggest they invent one. |
| Their situation: savings runway, status pressure, family, how much they want this job | Required | Ask before recommending anything. If they will not answer, do not recommend an anchor. Lay out the choices and let them decide. |
| Their private walk away number | Required, from them only | Ask them to decide it themselves and write it down. Never suggest a number for it, and never put it in any draft or script. |

Above every row: if an input is missing, ask one short question and wait. Never guess a salary, a level, a term, or a family situation. A guessed number in a rehearsal becomes a real number in a real call.

## Part one: the HR screen salary question

### Why this moment matters

The recruiter has a short call and many candidates. They need to know you are roughly affordable so they do not waste the hiring manager's time. That is all this is. It is not the negotiation, but what you say here follows you into every later conversation, because it gets written down.

Both failure modes are real.

- **Too high** and you are screened out before anyone meets you. Nobody tells you why.
- **Too low** and you have negotiated against yourself before an offer exists. The number you said becomes the ceiling.

### The move, in order

**Step 0: look for a posted range first.** Many places now publish pay ranges. If the posting has one, you are not guessing anymore. Read it before the call.

**Step 1: do the research before the call.** You need a range for this role, at this level, in this city. Search the exact title plus the city on the job boards you can access, read 10 postings, and write down every range you see. Ask any person you know in that role. Check whether the province or state requires posted ranges. Write the range down before the call so you are not doing maths while someone waits.

**Step 2: try one deflection, framed as scope.** One, not three. Three sounds evasive.

> "I want to give you a number that reflects the full scope of the role. Could you share the budgeted range first?"

This reads as thoughtful rather than as dodging, and it puts the first number with them. The earlier you are in the process, the more normal this is.

**Step 3: if they answer with a range, you are done.** Say something calm and open, and move on.

> "That works with what I have seen for this level in Toronto. I am comfortable in that range, and I would want to talk about the full package once we both know it is a fit."

Notice you did not pick a spot inside their range. Do not. That is anchoring against yourself.

**Step 4: if they press you, give a range, never a single number.** Use the range from your research.

> "Based on what I have seen for senior product roles in Toronto at this level, I have been seeing roughly X to Y. My focus is the scope and the team, so there is room to talk once we know the shape of the role."

**Step 5: put your real target near the bottom of the range you say.** If your target is 150, say something like 145 to 170, not 130 to 155. The whole range pulls upward and your target stops being the top of what you asked for.

**Step 6: never say your true minimum.** Not as a favour, not as honesty, not when they say "just so I do not waste your time." It gets stored and it becomes the ceiling. There is no version of the process where saying your floor helps you.

### If they ask what you currently earn

In some places they may not legally ask. In others they can. Either way you do not have to answer with a number.

> "I would rather talk about the range for this role, since the scope is different from my last one. What has the team budgeted?"

If you moved countries, add the honest reason. It is true and it works.

> "My last salary was in a different market, so it is not a useful comparison for this role. I have researched the range here and I am aligned with it."

## Part two: reading the real offer

### Step 1: say thank you and buy time. Do not negotiate on the call.

The moment the offer arrives, the only correct first reply is warmth plus time.

> "Thank you, I am really glad to get this. Could you send the details in writing? I would like to read it properly and come back to you by <day>."

Two business days is normal and nobody will withdraw an offer for it. If they give you a hard deadline of hours, that itself is information about the company.

### Step 2: read the whole package, not just the base salary

Go through every line and write down what it is actually worth to this person.

- **Base salary.** The only part that is certain and the part every future raise is calculated from. This is where to push first.
- **Bonus.** Target percent, is it paid on company performance or personal performance, has it actually been paid in past years, is it prorated in year one.
- **Equity.** Write down how many units, over how many years, what happens when you leave, and whether the company is public or private. Then stop. This kit does not value equity and neither should Claude. For preparing the conversation, the only rule is this: do not accept a lower base in exchange for equity you cannot spend. If the equity is a big part of the package, that is the moment to pay an accountant or a financial adviser for an hour of their time before you sign.
- **Signing bonus.** The easiest thing for a company to say yes to, because it is one time money and does not raise their salary bands. Good to ask for when base will not move. Check the clawback if you leave early.
- **Vacation and leave.** Days matter. Ask the real number, not the "unlimited" word.
- **Benefits start date.** If they start after 3 months, that is a real cost.
- **Pension or retirement match.** Free money if you take it. Write down the percent.
- **Start date.** Yours to ask for. A later start is a real benefit that costs the company nothing.
- **Title and level.** Cheaper for them to give than money, and it moves your next job too.
- **Remote or hybrid days, written down.** A verbal promise about days in the office is not a term.

### Step 3: decide the anchor and the counter

Now, after they have chosen you, is when anchoring is correct.

- Ask for one clear number on base, with a reason attached. A reason is scope, market research, or another live offer. "I need more" is not a reason.
- Ask for at most two other things. A long list reads as difficult and it dilutes the main ask.
- Rank what you actually want first. If base cannot move, know in advance whether you want signing bonus, vacation, title, or start date instead.
- Set your walk away privately, in writing, before the call. Tell nobody.
- Expect a middle. If you ask for 15 above and they offer 7 above, that is a normal outcome and it is real money you would not otherwise have.

### Step 4: draft the reply, then rehearse it out loud

Written first, because it is calmer and it gives them something to forward to their boss. Then rehearse the call, because they will call.

## Output format

Produce one file, `offer-<company>.md`.

```markdown
# Offer read: <Company>, <Role>
Received: <date>. Reply by: <date>

## The package, line by line
| Item | What they offered | What it is worth to me | Push or accept |
|---|---|---|---|

## What I actually know about market
<Only numbers with a source. Everything else marked UNVERIFIED, with the exact search to run.>

## My situation
Runway: <> | Other live processes: <> | How much I want this: <> | Private walk away: <>

## The ask
Anchor on base: <number> because <scope, market, or competing offer>
Second ask: <>
Third ask (optional): <>
If base cannot move, I want: <in order>

## Drafted reply
<full email text>

## Rehearsal script
<their likely lines, my lines, and the three hard moments>
```

## What this kit cannot do

A kit is a set of instructions for Claude. It is not a service and not a person on your side of the table.

- **It cannot look up what anything pays.** No salary sites, no live market data, nothing. Every number in your prep comes from research you did. This is the single biggest limit in this kit.
- **It does not remember.** Claude starts every session empty. What you said in the screen six weeks ago only exists in your `offer-<company>.md` file. Keep that file. In the worked example below, the whole counter rests on a range she stated in July, and the only reason she could hold to it is that she wrote it down.
- **It cannot see your offer letter unless you hand it over.** Paste the text or save the file where Claude can read it.
- **It cannot send your reply, call the recruiter, or negotiate for you.** It drafts. You send, you speak, you decide.
- **It cannot hear how you sound.** Rehearsal only works if you say the words out loud, to a wall or to a friend. Reading them silently is not rehearsal.

## Worked example

**This is an example. Priya, Sarah, and the company are made up. Every number below belongs to this example only. It is not market data, it is not a benchmark, and it must not be quoted to anyone as either. Your own numbers come from your own research, every time.**

**Candidate:** Priya, product manager, 7 years, now in Toronto, 5 months of savings left, no competing offer. She wants this job.

### What happened in the HR screen, six weeks earlier

The recruiter asked for her expectations in minute 14.

She tried the deflection once: "I want to give you a number that reflects the full scope of the role. Could you share the budgeted range first?"

The recruiter said she had to share a number first.

Priya had done the research. She had read 11 postings for senior product roles in Toronto and written down every range she found. Her target was 150.

She said: "From what I have seen for senior product roles in Toronto at this level, I have been seeing roughly 145 to 170. My focus is the scope and the team, so there is room to talk once we know the shape of the role."

She did not say the true number in her head, which was that she would have taken 125 that week because her savings were running out. If she had said 125, the offer would have arrived at 125.

### The offer, six weeks later

| Item | Offered | Worth to her | Push or accept |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 142,000 | The main thing. Below the 145 floor she stated. | **Push** |
| Bonus | 10 percent target, company performance | Real but not certain | Ask if it paid the last two years |
| Equity | Private company, 4 year vest | Cannot spend it, do not count it as pay | Accept, do not trade base for it |
| Signing | None offered | Easy for them to say yes to | **Push as second ask** |
| Vacation | 3 weeks | Below what she had | Ask for 4 |
| Benefits | Start after 90 days | A real cost while she has no coverage | Ask for day one |
| Start date | In 3 weeks | She wanted 4 | Small ask, free for them |

### The reasoning

She stated 145 to 170 in the screen. They came in at 142, under her own stated floor. That is the cleanest possible reason to counter, and it costs her nothing to say, because it is just holding to what she already said.

Anchor: **158 base.** Above her 150 target, inside the range she already stated, so it is consistent and not a surprise. Second ask: a signing bonus, because base often has a band and signing usually does not. Third: benefits from day one.

Private walk away, written down and told to nobody: 138 with day one benefits. Nobody at the company will ever hear that number.

### Drafted reply

> Hi Sarah,
>
> Thank you for this. I am glad to get it, and after meeting Marc and the team I am more interested in this role, not less.
>
> I wanted to come back on two points.
>
> On base, when we spoke in July I shared a range of 145 to 170 for this level in Toronto, and the offer at 142 sits just under that. Given the scope, which is owning the whole verification journey including the vendor relationship, I would be looking for 158.
>
> Second, benefits currently start at 90 days. Coming from outside Canada I have no other coverage in that window, so starting benefits on day one would matter a lot to me.
>
> Everything else looks good, and I am ready to sign quickly once we settle these. Happy to jump on a call if that is easier.
>
> Priya

Note what the email does. It thanks them, it says clearly that she wants the job, it gives a reason before the number, it asks for exactly two things, and it says she will sign fast. Nothing in it is a threat and nothing in it is an apology.

### Rehearsal script

**Sarah:** "Thanks Priya. 158 is above the band for this level. I can probably get to 148."

**Priya:** "I appreciate you going back for that. 148 works for me if we can do a signing bonus of 8,000 and start the benefits on day one. Then I am ready to sign this week."

Say the number. Then stop talking. The silence after your number is theirs to fill, not yours.

**Sarah:** "I do not think I can do both."

**Priya:** "Understood. Of the two, benefits from day one matters more to me, because I have no coverage right now. If you can do that, I am comfortable."

**Sarah:** "Can you tell me your absolute minimum so I do not waste time going back and forth?"

**Priya:** "I would rather not put a floor on it, because I do not want to negotiate against myself. What I have asked for is 148 with day one benefits, and that is a yes from me today."

**Sarah:** "This is our best and final."

**Priya:** "Thank you for being straight with me. Can I take until Thursday and come back to you? I do not expect that to change my answer, I just want to read the final version properly."

The three hard moments, and what to do:

1. **Silence after you say your number.** Do not fill it. New job seekers talk themselves down in that gap more than anything else.
2. **"What is your minimum."** Never answer it. Repeat what you asked for and say it is a yes.
3. **"Best and final."** Sometimes true. Take the time, read the final paper, and reply calmly. Being asked for two days has not withdrawn a real offer.

### How it ended for Priya

Made up ending for a made up person, shown so the shape is complete: 148 base, benefits from day one, no signing bonus, start date moved by one week. That is 6,000 more per year than the first offer, plus 90 days of coverage, from one email and one 12 minute call.

## Honest limits

- Negotiating can feel rude when you badly need the job. It is normal, it is expected, and the recruiter does this every week. But you have to judge your own risk. If you have real pressure, taking a fair offer quickly is a legitimate decision, not a failure.
- This kit does not know current pay. You have to bring the research. A confident number with no source behind it is a guess wearing a suit.
- Equity in a private company is not money you can spend today. Nothing in this kit is investment, tax, or legal advice. Speak to a qualified professional about those, before you sign.
- Companies do sometimes say no to everything. A no on money is not a no on the job, and asking well does not cost you an offer that was real.

### Where you have to use your own judgement

Claude cannot carry any of this for you.

- **How much risk you can take.** Only you know your savings, your family, your status, and what a lost offer would actually mean. Nothing here should push you past what you can afford.
- **Whether to negotiate at all.** Sometimes the honest answer is to say yes quickly and get on with your life. That is a real decision, not a failure of nerve.
- **Your walk away number.** You set it, you write it down, you tell nobody. Claude must never suggest one.
- **Whether the contract is safe to sign.** A lawyer, not this kit and not you at midnight.
- **What the job is worth to you beyond money.** The team, the manager, the learning, the commute. None of that fits in a number and the file cannot weigh it.