Whatever his proposal is - review it and counter it with AT LEAST a 10% uptick in the money. Maybe even lean into 20%. Maybe more. Don't be afraid to ask. That's awesome. I wouldn't walk away from that. liking the people you work with/for is worth A LOT in dollars. So are you... so quit selling yourself short with this nonsense: Focus on the bundle of potential. You've got a TON to offer him. He wouldn't bother thinking of your future with his outfit if he didn't want to keep you around. He likes you because you're thoughtful and a hard worker and interesting, and intelligent, and clean, and well spoken, and a problem solver and and and... I'd trade you RIGHT NOW for dozens of people at my company who have degrees and "experience". Don't trade an old dream of living in Colorado for a great current situation. You can ALWAYS move to CO later... you probably can't go back and work for him later.And he's an absolute joy to work for/with. He's trusting, super smart, accommodating and flexible.
Not to mention, he's also an interesting and hilarious guy.
but I am without a college degree or relevant work experience. A raw bundle of potential, but not much more.
I really appreciate the feedback, and the encouragement. About the money, I had a few back-and-forths about it, but he's pretty firm on the figure. Which he, by the way, thinks is slightly above market value for me. I'm gonna put it to him that we review my value and my compensation by the end of the calendar year. So I'm not as excited about the money piece. But when I think about the sum of the opportunity, I feel like I'm getting 85% of what I reasonably could expect, and there's a lot of perks and future good experiences built into the deal. It's important to me start this thing as excited as I can be. Not a fake enthusiasm, but from a place where I'm not focusing on what I didn't get but all the good things. Because while I could walk away and stew about how my first interesting non-restaurant non-volunteer job should pay higher, I don't know if I'll be better off by, say, the end of this year. Whereas if I do this, I'm sure I'll be better off for it.