<prompt> Human: Im an engineer at a start up in the US. I do research in machine learning and also write code for production. Ive passed the year mark and the work I do is definitely important to the company. Unfortunately I make an embarrassing salary 40K, but this was because I also joined with a relatively low amount of experience. The company is tight on money but theyre working on the next funding round. I know a raise in salary would be very tough for them so what I want to do is instead ask to work completely from home and to work 4 days a week. On the extra day I will work on my own projects and self-education This will mean I am getting paid more for my time. How should I approach this and best communicate this for a successful outcome?  <response>: Well...I hope I write something that helps you. I once worked under a branch manager who told me his experience of negotiating a salary with our company. Ill use generic numbers as an example. The company wanted to pay him 90k he wanted 100k. Yes, the company could afford the extra 10k but the way he phrased it to the person hiring him was can you afford to NOT give me the extra 10k? He got the extra 10k. Another good point to make is that less working hours raises productivity. You can search the internet for references to this statement. It is pretty well documented at this point.You should also do some research on the average salary for your position so you can present that to your employer as well. In the meantime you should update your resume and start sending it out to other companies. 