Asking for a raise in a recession

There are more and more articles coming out that it might not be such a bad idea to ask for a raise in a recession. As long as you're fully aware of how valuable you are in your job, you can nudge in a professional way for higher pay. I've read that it's good to write down a list of your achievements, check out what other people are getting paid on Payscale.com and make sure the timing is right, such as a major score at work. If you're doing a great job and you're company knows it, you could have money coming your way!