Ask Bing: How to get a raise

I just got promoted. Today I found out that two members of my staff are paid higher than me, in fact way way higher, even with my promotion adjustment. I got really insulted by this, so I went to my boss and told him about my concern. I told him if he could not do something about it, then he might as well just return me back to my old position. Less pay but less responsibility so it balances out. Did I do the right thing?

Hell yeah. You may have done it too fast, though. You're in an unjust situation, and it really stinks. But they do value you enough to promote you. I would suggest the "I'm not happy with this situation" strategy. In this, you simply tell the boss that you are "not happy with this situation" and then say nothing more. Just sit there. He or she will then say, "Well, that's the situation and I don't know if there's anything I can do about it," and you can then say, "Well, that makes me unhappy."

Don't threaten. Don't cajole. The boss will eventually come to see that he has a valued player who is unhappy. Bosses don't like it when their key guys are unhappy. He may eventually move to do something about it. If he doesn't? Start looking for another job and leave him as quickly and brutally as you can, because he well and truly sucks.

A co-worker is constantly bad-mouthing other co-workers. I'm tired of hearing it and being caught in the middle. How do we tell this co-worker to mind her own business and don't worry about everyone else? When she doesn't get her way or attention, she sits at her desk and cries.

Your co-worker is nuts. As in, she has psychological problems. Anybody who cries at the office in this way is certifiable, in my opinion. She's miserable, complains about others, wants to create cabals against people to shore up her own self-image. You can do one of two things: ignore her, while being polite, knowing that she will eventually self-destruct, or you can get together with the rest of the people in the office to tell management that there's a screw rolling around loose in your department.

It may seem kind of mean, but what you've got here is a person who needs help, and she's not going to get it if everybody is running around enabling her craziness. This is business, after all, and while business may at times be an asylum, the inmates of this brand of sanitarium need to be at least marginally social, effective and capable of melding with the corporate culture.

I don't like your cigar. How about a carrot? It's healthier.

Yes. But they're very hard to light.

Keep the cigar. A fine cigar is one of the last true joys in life. Always best when enjoyed in solitude and silence, but that's not always possible. Try lighting one up this summer and remind yourself how wonderful a good cigar can be. And keep writing, I enjoy your work.

Thanks, man. I'm keeping it. If only to annoy all those Prius owners out there. Hey! Just kidding, Prius owners! I'm green! Really! And not just from my cigar, either!

What do you think of Bing's advice?