Interview Question: "What motivates you?"
When an interviewer asks you, "What motivates you?" they are looking for insight into why and how you are motivated to achieve workplace goals and succeed at the job.
The hiring manager will also be seeking to discover whether the factors that motivate you are aligned with the company’s goals and with the role in which you would be working.
Providing insight into the forces that motivate you at work can be a window into your personality and work style, helping your interviewers understand you as both a person and a potential employee.
First, take some time to research the company and the job prior to the interview. The more you know about the organizational goals of the employer, the better equipped you’ll be to respond.
To prepare your answer, think about the jobs you have held in the past:
- What occurred during your "best" days?
- When were you most looking forward to a day at work?
- When did you come home bursting with stories and feeling enthusiastic/excited?
Whether it was a successful meeting with a client, a complex project wrangled into submission, a new skill you mastered, or anything else, keep these positive moments in mind when conceptualizing your answer.
Examples:
"I'm really driven by results. I like it when I have a concrete goal to meet and enough time to figure out a strong strategy for accomplishing it. At my last job, our yearly goals were very aggressive, but I worked with my manager and the rest of my team to figure out a month-by-month strategy for meeting the year-end numbers. It was a real thrill to accomplish that."
"I'm motivated by digging into data. Give me a spreadsheet and questions, and I'm eager to figure out what's driving the numbers. At my current position, I prepare the monthly analytics report around sales. The data from these reports help drive and determine how the company charts its next steps and makes sales goals for the following months. Being able to provide that essential information is really motivating."
Tips for Providing the Best Answer
Keep the job in mind. When preparing your answer, also think about the skills and abilities that will be the most useful for this job. Try to highlight these in your answer.
Consider the company culture. If the company emphasizes the feeling of family in regards to its staff, for example, you might mention how achieving goals as a group motivates you.
Share an example. You could include an example from your previous position to explain the kinds of projects or tasks that motivate you. For example, if you say that you are driven by results, give an example of a time you set a goal and met (or exceeded) it. Make sure the example demonstrates a time you used your motivation to add value to an organization in some way.
What Not to Say
Don’t make it about you. When you respond, it’s best to focus on work-related motivators.
Don’t ramble. Have a clear and focused response to the question.
Keep it positive. Focus on the positive when you respond. For example, you don’t want to say that you’re motivated by a paycheck or because you don’t want to get fired for subpar performance.