<prompt> Human: I am a software engineer and few days ago I texted my ex-boss and congratulated him on a successful major release they had which I learned about from one of the posts on LinkedIn. He suggested that we should meet for lunch. I accepted his invitation and didnt think too much about it since I had very good personal and professional relationship with him and lunch invitation seemed pretty normal. But then I learnt from one of my ex-team member that he ex teammate, not my ex boss is moving out of the team and there is one position open in the team and that could be one of the reason for the lunch. To give some background, I had excellent experience working at this old place of mine and the only reason I left was because I felt that I was underpaid. I had discussed this with my ex-boss before leaving and he agreed that I was underpaid and as per him he did his best to raise my pay but it didnt go through with the higher management. So I left when I found a job with better pay. But I would go back to my old job in a heartbeat if they matched by current pay. So how should I go about this lunch without coming across too desperate ? Should I wait for my boss to bring up the open position during the lunch ? What if I go with the former option and he doesnt bring up the position at all , then should I be proactive and say that I am interested in the open position?  <response>: You dont have to settle the deal at this lunch. Let it be the opening to a conversation. I would expect to talk about responsibilities and general pay range, then hone in on a number through follow up emails or calls. Although you may be willing to go back for the same pay, you can play up your current position and perhaps says youd need 20 pay raise to transfer back. If you are replacing the other employee you should know how much they are making now and push for a little above that 10-25 all other things being equal. Finally end of year is here so bonuses will be paid out soon, dont jump ship right before you get your current companys bonus unless you can arrange a starting bonus to move quickly. You can be honest about this when start date is discussed. Best of both worlds would be to get the bonus from current company and a starting bonus from the old one. Finally, look into your current companys 401k vesting schedule and make sure you dont jump ship right before you hit a certain vesting tier if you have been contributing to an employer matched 401k. 