So you’re convinced you’re worth more than your boss pays? Well, it’s more than likely that you are. The tricky bit is getting more.

In today’s economic climate, you will probably find that bursting into your boss’s office and asking for a pay rise won’t work.

You need to be much more clever. For a start, you need to show why you deserve more. Once you’ve done that, there are a range of things to ask for aside from cold hard cash, such as "salary sacrifice", training, a "no-pay-rise promotion", and a performance based bonus.

" The most important thing is to be sure you’ve earned it and be sure that your boss knows you’ve earned it", says Judith Leeson, national president of the Australian Association of Career Counsellors.

"Think about the last time you had a rise – what were your duties and responsibilities? If you have grown in your job and grown the job since then, then it’s almost certain there will be a discrepancy between what you were paid to do and what you are doing now," she says.

"But don’t just say you are doing more complex tasks. Say how you have added value to the organisation. It’s really important that you can measure the benefits to the company. Then you are dealing with facts – not ‘I reckon I’m worth more’.

Here are some examples of rewards you could suggest:

• Parking space
• Extra days off
• Work from home
• Subsidised study
• Flexible hours

Another option is salary packaging, where you take less gross annual income in return for your employer paying an ongoing expense, such as car repayments and running costs. The most effective items to salary package are cars, superannuation, laptop computers, mobile phones, and palm pilots.