Women are encouraged these days, more than ever, to speak up and ask for a raise—and that’s a good thing.

But, it is possible to jump the gun. Even when you know you’re performing your responsibilities well beyond the job description, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s time to march over to your manager’s desk for a little chat. Asking for a raise is an important step in managing your career, and it’s something you should plan carefully. And sometimes, timing is everything.

Remember that just because you think you’re ready for a raise, doesn’t mean your boss—or your company—is ready to give you one. Ask for that raise at the wrong moment, and you might find you’ve inadvertently put yourself on your manager’s bad side—instead of impressing her with your confidence in your value.

If you’ve decided you’re ready to ask for a raise, that’s great! Now, before you start practicing your pitch in the mirror, here are a few questions you should ask yourself to assure your boss is ready, too.

Have You Been There Over A Year?
Maybe this seems old-fashioned, given how often people change careers—but in my experience, I’ve found that the one-year mark still seems to be the standard by which most managers distinguish the “probational” employees from the veterans.

If you’re just entering the job market, one year may seem like an eternity—but put yourself in your boss’ shoes. How long has she been there? If your boss has five, or even 10 years on you, asking for a raise before your first year anniversary could make you come off as entitled—even if your manager is thrilled with your performance.

When I first became a manager, I was a little stunned by how quickly my employees expected advancement. Every manager has herself been at the bottom, and there’s still something to be said for “putting in the time.” Whenever I had an employee who asked for a raise after only a few months on the job, I immediately felt she didn’t respect, or understand, the full spectrum of her responsibilities.

Unless you’ve been given specific guidance about an accelerated timeline for promotion, it’s a safe bet to assume you need to give the job at least one year before you—and your boss—are ready to start talking money.

Is the Company In Transition?
If your company is in transition—for example, going through a merger or a company-wide restructuring—it’s generally a bad time to be asking for more money. It’s a real bummer of a situation, because, unfortunately, it’s completely out of your control. But, the best course of action is almost always to sit tight, keep working hard, and wait for the dust to settle.

At one point in my career, I worked for a firm that had been through three major mergers—and a few minor ones—during the several years I’d been there. And, as is often the case with mergers, the staff had been reduced, meaning that those of us lucky enough to keep our jobs were suddenly responsible for the work of three.

At the time, the increased workload seemed like the best rationale for a raise possible. My company was getting three (or more) employees for the price of one! What I didn’t consider, however, was that my manager—along with all my colleagues—were also stretched pretty thin, and money was tight.

Luckily for me, my manager recognized that I was just young and inexperienced, and proceeded to explain to me how my request might be taken negatively during a time when everyone was working hard.