I've asked for a raise and gotten it once. My other raises were all from switching jobs, although I usually left for other reasons and you generally get a step up.
When I did ask I knew the company was small and relatively informal. I said that I had done X, Y and Z that included taking more responsibility and really delivering and that I would like a raise. They asked me how much and I said $15K and they said yes. It was pretty sweet.
Not to say you don't deserve it, but I would not really consider doing "above average work" to be a good enough reason for a big raise. A small annual one, sure. I would think you'd need to be taking on additional responsibilities. Assuming you're doing that, then I think you should be able to make a compelling argument. Also, since you know that you're underpaid, you could bring that up as a point.
Whatever you do, don't make it into a threat that you will leave if you don't get the raise. If they say no, just ask what steps you can take so that you WOULD be worth $10K more money to them. If the answer is "nothing", then get the hell out. Most likely the answer will be "you would need to doing X independently" or something like that. In that case, do it, get your praise in writing from your managers/coworkers, and then ask again in 6 months.
Comments
I've asked for a raise and gotten it once. My other raises were all from switching jobs, although I usually left for other reasons and you generally get a step up.
When I did ask I knew the company was small and relatively informal. I said that I had done X, Y and Z that included taking more responsibility and really delivering and that I would like a raise. They asked me how much and I said $15K and they said yes. It was pretty sweet.
Not to say you don't deserve it, but I would not really consider doing "above average work" to be a good enough reason for a big raise. A small annual one, sure. I would think you'd need to be taking on additional responsibilities. Assuming you're doing that, then I think you should be able to make a compelling argument. Also, since you know that you're underpaid, you could bring that up as a point.
Whatever you do, don't make it into a threat that you will leave if you don't get the raise. If they say no, just ask what steps you can take so that you WOULD be worth $10K more money to them. If the answer is "nothing", then get the hell out. Most likely the answer will be "you would need to doing X independently" or something like that. In that case, do it, get your praise in writing from your managers/coworkers, and then ask again in 6 months.