Merit pay is typically a percentage of an employee's current salary, so starting out at a generous salary matters more for your total earnings than winning big raises. But whether you are negotiating starting salary or a raise, you need to be able to talk about money effectively, focused on the value you bring to the organization. The Self-Assessment Center at Monster.com offers resources for helping you negotiate a fair pay package.

Visit the Self-Assessment Center at Monster ( http://tools.monster.com ). Click on "More Self-Assessment Tests & Quizzes." Click on "More tools and quizzes." Under Self-Assessment, click on "Test Your Money Talk."

That link should direct you to an article called "Test Your Money-Talk Skills" by Paul W. Barada. Read the introduction, and click on "Start the Quiz!" Answer the questions and review the analysis of your responses. Then answer the following questions.

Questions

1. How well did you perform on the quiz? What did you learn from the feedback?
2. What ideas from this quiz would you like to apply to your current job or the next position for which you interview?