Behavioral Question: "How do you motivate and coach others?"

This is a behavioral interview question has no wrong or right answer. One strategy for your response is to share an example to demonstrate the motivational techniques you have used in the past.

Describe the situation, your action, and the results (STAR)

In your answer, it's also helpful to highlight that you understand motivational approaches should be tailored to personality type. You can mention that you would take the time to get to know your clients or team members and assess their needs and preferences. It's helpful to differentiate how you might approach staff who perform well, versus the office underperformers.

Example:

"I believe that recognizing positive aspects of employee performance is critical to motivating most workers. For example, I managed a staff of five employees, and I noticed that one of the workers was somewhat introverted and tended to stay in the background. He performed adequately but was reluctant to contribute at meetings, and I thought he could be more productive if optimally motivated.

I started a daily ritual of checking in with him and monitoring his output. I provided positive feedback regarding his daily achievements. I discovered that the quality and quantity of his output increased as I interacted with him more frequently. I was able to call upon him at meetings since I understood the details of his work better and ask him to share some of his successful strategies with colleagues."

Demonstrate your awareness of some of the common factors that help increase motivation at work, such as bonuses, team spirit, and recognition.