Employers everywhere are tightening their belts in response to the current financial crisis. A good deal of employers are already past cutting travel and other expenses and are looking at payroll to keep costs in check. This complicates matters for any employee who is up for a raise right now, myself included. Thankfully CNN has a list of six benefits to barter for if a pay hike is out of the question.

The benefits compiled in partnership with Careerbuilder.com include the following:

• Time off
• Relaxed dress code
• Education opportunities
• Going green bonuses
• Flexible schedules
• Wellness benefits

I found this list to be quite useful since the timing on my negotiation for a raise is what can be referred to as unfortunate to say the least, and I may have to settle for perks rather than cash. While I am a big fan of using perks such as the ability to work from home, flexible schedules and a relaxed dress code to retain employees during good economic times they are a poor substitute for cash when expenses are rising. Have you tried paying your mortgage in casual Fridays? The banks aren't that desperate....yet.

Sadly with the bailout having little positive effect on the stock market it looks like employees looking for compensation will have to make do with perks rather than payment for the time being. Then again if you work for AIG, a recipient of government funding, the perks may be worth it!

No matter what you plan to do with your life, skills in negotiation are incredibly important. It's generally a field that's associated with business deals, but teachers with a room full of boisterous 8-year olds have quite a bit of negotiation to do as well. If you aspire to ever earn more than you do now, getting a raise will likely involve some kind of negotiation.

Looking to learn more about this art form, I started googling around for books on negotiation and saw some good reviews of Trump Style Negotiation: Powerful Strategies and Tactics for Mastering Every Deal, written by Trump's longtime lawyer, George H. Ross.

Full disclosure: I hate Donald Trump.

That said, this is actually an amazing book. With an emphasis on relationship building and fair play, Ross walks the reader through the various tactics negotiators can use: simple solutions, dead dog on the table, deadlocking, the crunch, and many, many more. You'll also learn about how to deal with difficult people" Ivan the Intimidator, Waffling Wilma, and Know-it-all Charlie.

Examples from mega-deals in real estate -- involving Trump and other high profile developers -- add color, making this a surprisingly breezy and enjoyable read. If you ever plan to negotiate anything -- and that's pretty much everyone -- you would do well to read this book. Don't let Trump's scary face on the cover scare you.