The Raise Before the Layoffs

You booked this one-on-one to ask for the raise you've earned twice over — and you walked in to find your boss already reviewing a spreadsheet of names, yours safe, others not. He has fourteen minutes before the next meeting and zero budget he'll admit to. Every number you say, he'll halve; every emotion you show, he'll file as a weakness. But you know the client that renews only because of you, and he can't afford to lose you this quarter. Name your figure, anchor it to the money you make him, and don't blink first. Ask now.