If you think you may want to ask for a promotion or raise during your annual review, the best thing you can do is to set up a pre-meeting with your boss several months in advance. During that pre-meeting, the goal is to find out exactly what you need to demonstrate in order to reach that next level or earn that raise. 

Reaching out to your boss to schedule a pre-meeting might feel daunting, so we have an email template ready for you!

Hi [manager],

I’d like to schedule time to discuss my professional goals. As I reflect on the work we have accomplished this year, I value your input on how I can continue to grow at [company name].

I have specific goals in mind as I think about the next few years, and would like to discuss how I can continue to increase my impact on our team.

Please let me know if there is a convenient time in the next few weeks for a 30-minute meeting to get your thoughts.

Thank you,

[your name]

You can read more about the pre-meeting here, including an email template to send after the meeting.