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Fourteen years ago this spring, I decided that I wanted to go to journalism school at the University of Missouri. It was a fantastic decision for me. I loved Mizzou, and was lucky to make amazing friendships there. But if I were offering advice to high school me, I’d make sure to tell him this:

Where you go school doesn’t really matter. What matters is what you do while you’re there.

I got so much out of my time at Mizzou. I realized early on that I was going to have opportunities to learn new skills and try new things, and I tried to make the most of that. College was a place for a number of firsts: I got my first broadcasting experience, as a DJ with a weekly show on the student radio station. I took classes in photography. I learned how to play the guitar. I took Spanish classes and studied abroad. I joined the student Senate and tried to have a positive impact on student life.

If I were in school today, I hope I’d go even further. I’d like to think that I’d be adventurous enough to try to launch a magazine — an actual print publication that came out a few times per year — or maybe start a podcast with friends. Or maybe I’d go to the editors of the school paper and sell them on the idea that I wanted to launch a daily morning newsletter briefing. I’d hope that I’d be motivated to create new spaces for others to write, publish, and experiment.

And those are the types of projects that you can take on at any school. I’d tell high school me: Don’t stress too much about finding the perfect school. Make sure you know if you want to go to a big school or a small one, a school in a college town or a major city. Know if you want to go to a school with sports (or lots of school spirit), or not. Understand the financial impact of the choice you’re about to make.

But you’re going to meet great people anywhere you go. Once you’re there, it’s up to you to learn and to build great things with the friends you make.

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I took that photo of game day in Columbia, Mo.

I talked to a fellow Mizzou grad, Delia, for her newsletter, about newsletters. She asked me a really good question:

You were the first newsletter editor at BuzzFeed, and you are the first and only newsletter staffer at The New Yorker now. Can you talk about the challenges of working as a team of usually one?

The challenge really isn’t trying to get others excited about newsletters — I get pitched new newsletters more often than I pitch my own! The teams I’ve worked with get why newsletters work and why they can be so powerful. But with a small team, the real challenge is trying to figure out which products make sense for our newsletter strategy, and which we have the time and resources to say yes to.

I wanted to expand on that one for a second.

I like saying yes to new ideas. I’ve launched all sorts of things over the years: Newsletters, websites, weird projects. But on a small team, you have to say no to some things. Before you say yes — even to the ideas you’re excited about — you have to ask yourself:

Do you have the team to take this on? — Big, ambitious projects take time. Are there people on your team who have the time to take on a new project?

Do you have the resources to take this on? — That exciting idea you have might require dev help or data resources. Are those teams bought in? Do they have the right tools to help?

Do you have the money to take this on? — That project might require marketing resources, or new tools to help you execute things. Is there a budget for that?

Do you know how to we’re going to measure success once you take this on? — If you’re going to try something ambitious, you need to know how you’re going to measure it. What are the metrics that matter for this? How will you know if the thing you’re working on is actually working? Remember: If you’re trying something that can’t be measured, then how will you know if it worked?

There are going to be some ideas that don’t meet that criteria. Right now, there are big ideas I’d love to try, but I don’t have the team or the budget for it, or I’m not sure how we’ll measure it. But that’s OK — there are always other ideas to try instead. We’ll get started on those.

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That neon YES sign, which is by Julian Lozano for Unsplash, is truly proof that there is stock footage for everything.

The job hunting process can be a grind. You wrote a great resume and cover letter. You interviewed. You followed up with thank you notes. You interviewed again.

You got offered the job!

But that’s not the end of the process. Don’t accept it just yet — you should still think about how you can negotiate for more.

Most companies build some wiggle room into a negotiation. They’re expecting you to counter by asking for a little more, and if you don’t, you’re leaving money on the table.

Here’s how to prepare yourself for a contract negotiation:

1) Do your research — When you’re first thinking of applying to a job, go out and talk to your friends in the industry, and ask them for guidance about what you should be asking for. Don’t make the mistake I once made:

When I was interviewing at BuzzFeed, I was wading into brand new territory. I’d never worked at a start-up like that before. I didn’t have a good sense of how much they’d pay, what my hours would be like, or whether or not their offer of stock options was something I should take seriously.

I also didn’t utilize my network correctly. I should have also been talking to colleagues a few years older than me, who could have told me more about what to expect from a growing company like this, and peers my age, who could have told me more about what they were making at similar jobs in the same city, and made sure I understood how much I really needed to make to live in New York.

Looking back, it’s clear that by failing to understand the market value for the job, I cost myself thousands of dollars. Learn from my mistake, and utilize your network!

On top of that: Make sure you check sites like Glassdoor, which can help set a reasonable salary range for this job.

2) Give them your number, but be flexible — This part of the negotiation actually starts before you get the offer, since most companies will ask for an expected salary during the interview process, hoping to weed out candidates who are asking for something out of their target range. When you do that first interview with a recruiter or HR, make sure you have number in mind. (It can be a specific number, like $50k, or a range, like $50-55k. Make it a round number — what matters here is that you set an anchor price around which you can negotiate.)

Then memorize these words: “This is what my number is. But I’m willing to have a conversation about it.” They may not be able to offer you exactly that number, but signaling openness to negotiations is key. Maybe they’ll come in below your number, but they’ll offer you bonuses or other opportunities (like stock options) to help you reach that number. Or perhaps you’ve just set the expectation that when you do get an offer, you’ll likely be asking for a little more. Either way: Be flexible with that number.

3) Look for leverage — When you finally get the offer, maybe you’ll be able to leverage another offer — like if your current company decides to match or beat the number — to get the best possible contract for you. Maybe you’re leaving something behind at an old job — stock options, an upcoming bonus, or even a more generous vacation policy — that you can bring up in the negotiation. Maybe you’re thinking about going back to school, and can use that opportunity to put pressure on your potential new employer. Be upfront with this sort of thing. Say, for instance: “Hey, I’ve got a bonus coming up next month that I’m leaving on the table if I take this job. If you could match that number, it would make this decision a lot easier for me. What do you think?” Maybe they’ll match, or maybe they’ll give you the chance to start a few weeks later, enabling you to collect that bonus or take a few extra vacations days.

And remember: It doesn’t hurt to negotiate. It’s highly unlikely that a company will pull their offer because you asked for more. They’ve gone through the process, looked at potentially dozens of candidates, and decided on you. They’ve invested a ton of hours in your candidacy. They really want to hire you — and in the end, they’re not going to back away from the table if you ask for 5% more in salary. You may get a fraction of that, or nothing at all, but if you don’t ask, the answer is always no.

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At top, a photo of the figurative negotiation table, by Samuel Zeller for Unsplash.