What could an employer do that would allow them to pay me $10,000 less without requiring them to write a check? As wages rise, employers are looking to incentivize employee’s without paying them more. $10,000 is a lot of money so obviously this is hypothetical. However, it does offer a look into the mind of millennials and generation X.

$10,000?

10,000 dollars is a lot of money so the benefit for me would need to be great. I do not believe there is any one thing that I would be okay with other than working fewer days. This of course, would require them to hire more people so I am not sure that it qualifies. However, there are three things that I believe a company could do that, combined, would be worth more than $10,000 to me. 

Flexible Work Hours are a must

The first thing that I would greatly appreciate would be flexible working hours or working on specific objectives instead of a specific amount of time. I am a hard worker when I believe my hard work will result in a direct incentive for me. If I was able to work to complete a specific number of objectives instead of a specific number of hours, I would be very thankful and would be a huge benefit for me.

Dogs at Work? Yes please

The second thing I would appreciate would be the ability to bring my dog to work. I love animals and I believe they are a great stress reliever. Being able to have my dog at work would be a huge benefit that I would love to have. It would be a benefit I would be satisfied receiving less money in order to be able to have.

Some Feedback Would Be Nice

The third benefit I would appreciate would be meetings and direct feedback from my boss. I have worked at some jobs where I was given a task, but it was not appreciated or even reviewed by my superior. This makes the task feel useless and makes me feel like I am not valued. I would love to have specific meeting times or required meetings for me and my superior to meet to discuss the direction of my work and the quality of my work.

Summing Up

If a company could guarantee these three benefits to me, I would take a 10,000 pay cut. If I was deciding over two companies and one offered these benefits but for $10,000 less, I would probably choose the company with more benefits. Benefits are important to me and I would be willing to receive pay cuts to be able to have those benefits.

Join the conversation! Leave a comment and let me know what your ideas are!