The attitude you should radiate should never include a drop of desperation. You should appear as though you’re working now and happy with your present employment situation. You’re just looking around out there to see what’s available. Those other losers may “need” a job, but you’re just kicking some tires. Stay confident and secure.

Though you may need a job so badly you’re about to lose your apartment and your car, don’t ever show it. If an employer picks up on your desperation, when it comes hiring time you may be shocked with a very low-ball salary offer, which can cost you more than you might suspect.

If they hire you cheap and are still working for that firm ten years from now, your salary will still be far below others who were hired at around the same time. I’ve seen this happen over and over and it all begins with a low-ball salary offer.

When you start out with a low salary, your annual increases will also come in low each year, which keeps you behind your co-workers. You never catch up and in fact will only find yourself earning less and less relative to the others.

But having said that, working for a low salary can, in certain situations, work to your advantage. One electronic technician was eager to land an electrical engineer’s position. When he was offered a position with an engineer title at a terribly low salary, he jumped at the offer.

After a full year on the job he switched to another firm, which was happy to pay him an engineer’s salary instead of the more paltry technicians wage.