Many feel they are above it all and don’t understand that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Too many people heard that complainers don’t get ahead and think that they are above that. That couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s the one who complains who actually gets the great in the end.
This goes true for many things of going through life if you want something from someone else. It could be for a date, an insurance settlement, and the like. Whatever it is, the one who complains is the one who gets the rewards. If you just ask once and give up, then you are not persistent enough. You don’t deserve anything.
The first rule is that if you don’t ask you don’t get. That’s the number one first rule. The second rule is for you to continue to be persistent and complain that someone isn’t treating you fairly. You don’t get what you want from someone else by asking once. You get what you want by asking repeatedly.
For instance, one of my cars was involved in a car accident back in 2018. My insurance company downright refused to settle my diminished value claim. It was just for a measly couple of thousands of dollars or so. However, for some reason, they played hardball and kept rejecting my request.
So what did I do? I complained by suing them. I won the amount, court fees, and the appraisal cost. On top of that, I actually figured out how to sue someone. The insurance company paid me a couple of weeks later. It was that simple yet they refused. However, I didn’t want to give up. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
What Does Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease Mean?
The squeaky wheel gets the grease means that the one who complains and is vocal about their problems to others are the ones who actually gets the reward in the end. It’s not the one who quietly sits back and does nothing who gets the reward.
It’s the one who squeals, squeaks, and shouts the loudest that makes the most difference in getting a fair resolution. When you negotiate, you don’t just sit by and wait until the company offers you the money you deserve. You ask for it and keep asking for it until they finally give in and give you what you want.
One of my friends was negotiating for an investment banking job. The company refused to give a signing bonus. He asked once. They said no. He asked twice. They said no. On the third try, he brought up that he’s giving up his current bonus with his current company. Then the company agreed to give him a $10,000 signing bonus.
That’s the very definition of the squeaky wheel getting the grease. It matters. You do everything in order to get what you want. In order to get what you want, you have to work for it. No one is going to hand it to you, you’re going to have to convince the other person to give you what you deserve.
It’s for anything in life. Whether it’s for a salary raise, a promotion, and the like. The company doesn’t give you anything, you’re going to have to ask. Ask for the promotion. Ask for the raise. Anything that you deserve to get paid, you have to squeal and squeak until you get it.
6 Times the Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease
The first time the squeaky wheel gets the grease is when you SMASH that social share button and post to your favorite social media! If anything, please consider sharing the article for me as well as for your friends.
So with that said, let’s get into the article!
1) Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease For a Promotion
Many people just sit back and wait until their bosses give them a promotion. The way that I first got my promotion is by having another offer in my hand. Then I leveraged it against my boss to give me a promotion. Surprisingly, she gave it to me. A 25% increase in compensation right there.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease when it comes to moving up. What will a manger do when they have two great candidates and one candidate asks to move up while the other candidate just sits back quietly and does their work? That’s right. They’re going to go with the one who asks.
Speak up because your life depends on it. It’s your livelihood. It’s how you’re going to pay for your family’s life. You don’t want to just sit back and wait until something good happens to you. You want to be proactive in asking for things that you deserve, want, and need.
2) When You Want a Discount
No company in their right mind is going to volunteer any discount to you if you don’t ask for it. Why would they offer you a discount if you were ready to pay full price anyway? It would be a waste on their side. This is when the squeaky wheel gets the grease.
When you’re at the cashier at a department store, ask if there’s any discounts, promotions, or specials that they’re doing. If you’re buying clothes and the clothes is from the rack, then ask for a discount due to the quality being lower. Whatever it is, ask for it and that’s the only way you’re going to receive it.
When I was at Sprint, I asked if there were corporate discounts. There were but because my plan was already so cheap, they just said no. However, if I hadn’t even asked, I wouldn’t have even known there were corporate discounts for working at my company. There’s always a way.
3) For a Raise
Maybe you decided that a promotion isn’t in the works right now so then the next best thing is for you to ask for a raise. This past performance review, I flat out asked my boss what I need to do in order to get a raise. To my surprise, he actually mentioned specific action steps that I can take in order to get there.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Too many people don’t manage their careers because they think they’re going to be taken care of by the company. The company is too busy taking care of itself that they don’t have time to think about you. You’re going to have to think about yourself.
Manage your career because no one else is going to do it for you. One of my former bosses said it perfectly. If you want something, be vocal about it. He’s wanted to give so many opportunities to people yet flat out didn’t because he didn’t know that’s what they wanted. Ask, ask, and ask some more.
Amazon agreed to hand out a record $6B in stock awards to their employees due to complaints of low pay. It wouldn’t have happened if employees never spoke up. Complaining is profitable. Continue to complain and complain some more. Ignore others who say complaining is a bad thing to do.
4) Negotiating Bills
Too many people just let their phone, cable, or insurance companies raise their rates without thinking twice. They think, “eh, it’s just an extra $50 over 6 months, who cares?”. No, that’s not the right way to look at it. That $50 spread out over millions of customers is a LOT of company to the company.
When it comes time for renewal, talk about just how loyal you’ve been to the company. How you’ve never missed a payment in the entire relationship. Then if that fails, then you have to do comparison shop and see whether you need to go to another company.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease. The lease renewals are when companies love to slide in an “inconsequential” $10/month increase. They know it’s a lot of hassle for you to move. That’s how they play the game, increase profits, and make you pay more than what you need to.
5) When You Want a Meeting
In high school, I annoyed an important city lawyer into giving me a recommendation letter. I only met him once and I didn’t really know how to go about doing so. My awkward self just didn’t know how to ask or the right way to go about doing so. But I got a yes in the end.
When you want a meeting, a recommendation, or anything else, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Ask, ask, and ask some more. You’ll be surprised just how many people are willing to say yes to a simple thing like a meeting. The higher up someone is, the better your ask has to be.
You’ll have to personalize and tailor the ask to maybe when you saw them speak at a conference, or how you have a personal connection with their work, and the like. You’ll be surprised just how many yes you’re going to get with this approach. People are more than happy to lend their time helping others.
6) Asking for Ad Hoc Things
In my articles, I always ask for people to SMASH that social share button and share with their friends. I know that if I don’t ask, I’m never going to get it. It’s ad hoc things like this that makes a difference. Sometimes, my articles do get shared with quite a lot of people. I am pleasantly grateful in those instances.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Even if you get a no, it’s better to have asked and gotten rejected than to never have asked at all. You won’t be able to get a yes easily if you ask for money. However, get creative with your asks. There are some creative things to ask for in this world that many people have gotten.
Once you master this art, then the world opens up to you. This doesn’t mean that this will solve world hunger and make every problem in your life go away. It means that it will make your life better, even if by a little, than someone who didn’t take all the steps as outlined.
Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease
The squeaky wheel gets the grease. So many people don’t understand this and become a bystander while they see others surpass them. You’re going to have to be proactive in your life. No one is going to hand anything to you. You’re going to have to go out and get things yourself.
For my first work rotation and assignment, HR tried to put me somewhere in engineering. I flat out refused and declined. She asked 3 more times and I declined and kept insisting that I wanted to work in finance. I ended up being placed in finance thereafter.
I kept asking and kept wanting to be placed where I wanted to go. It was my career, my life, and my future that was at stake. You have the right to get what you deserve and want. You never ever back down on principle, you keep trying until you get the fair resolution that works for both sides.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Fight as if your life depends on it because others WILL try to take more from you if you let them take more from you. Other people don’t care about you, they care about themselves the most. Don’t quietly simmer down while you see other people get what they deserve.
Life is already hard enough. Make it easier for yourself by asking and being persistent with everything that you’re wanting in life. You’re going to have to fight for these limited resources. Don’t let people walk all over you. Defend and fight for your life because you’re worth it.
Times the Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease Shortlist:
- Squeaky wheel gets the grease for a promotion
- When you want a discount
- For a raise
- Negotiating bills
- When you want a meeting
- Asking for ad hoc things
