What motivates you?
When a recruiter asks you this question, they are not fishing for random information. In fact, they are looking for specific information that allows them to understand where you draw your energy from and whether you are fully capable to execute the role you are interviewing from. The way you answer this questions also reflects your mindset, and whether or not it aligns with the culture and values at the organization.
This might sound like a tricky question, but with the proper approach, your answer may end up checking all the boxes.
In this article from the How To Answer Series by Your Legal Career Coach, we bring you guidance and tips on how to answer ‘What Motivates You?’ during an internship or job interview. Read on!
WHAT EXACTLY IS THE RECRUITER LOOKING FOR?
Providing insight into the forces that motivate you at work can be a window into your personality and work style, thereby helping your interviewers understand you as both a person and a potential employee. There is a big difference between the candidate who’s motivated by building teams and establishing strong relationships with coworkers, and the candidate whose best day is working independently on a report that improves the company’s bottom line. Both candidates bring with them strong advantages, and this question can help interviewers narrow their pool down to the individual who is the best fit for the position and the company.
It can be somewhat tricky to come up for an impact answer for this question, mostly because it requires self-reflection. Ask yourselves these questions:
What your happiest memories at the workplace?
What would you look forward to on a typical day at the workplace?
What contributes to your satisfaction at the workplace?
REFLECTING ON PAST ACHIEVEMENTS
It is important to reflect on moments when you felt proud of your work or experienced a sense of meaning and purpose in your professional life. Of course, these events may have been complemented by external praise or rewards; just don’t make those your criteria for an “accomplishment,” especially for a question like this.
UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE
Before you start preparing an answer, it is extremely important to re-read the job description, emphasizing on the soft skills that describe an ideal employee, as well as the main responsibilities of the job. Authenticity is always encouraged, but a strong answer will show that you paid attention to the job description. For example, if you see that the job does not entail much collaboration or interpersonal communication, you probably should not say how you are motivated by personal interaction and teamwork.
STORYTELLING IS AN ADVANTAGE
The key to an effective answer that would not sound like every other answer the interviewer is hearing is to be specific and illustrate your response with an example. Stories are memorable and persuasive, so use one to your advantage. An effective story about an experience you went through hat motivated you is likely to make you stand out in the crowd.
For example, if you are interviewing at a law firm, your answer may look something like this:
“I’m driven primarily by my desire to learn new things—big or small—and take on new responsibilities so that I’m constantly growing as an employee and contributing more to my team and organization. I spent several summers working internships and felt most fulfilled when I volunteered for a particular case, jumped in to help with research, and learned how things would work best in that case. All of that experience helped immensely when I took a step up to do an assessment internship last year focused on the General Corporate practice, and that is what excites me so much about the opportunity to join this firm as a full-time Associate.”
You may also choose to highlight that as a lawyer, you get immense satisfaction in solving problems and helping people.
Read Our Article On ‘How To Answer- Are You Willing To Fail’ HERE.
HOW NOT TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION
- Keep your answer positive. No recruiter wishes to hear that you are motivated to avoid getting fired for a below the par performance.
- It is important to come across as genuine so it would be ideal to present an answer without thinking too much or seeming confused.
- Instead of focusing too much on yourself, try to imbibe more about the role and responsibilities in the answer.
YLCC would like to thank Sachet Labroo for his insights in this article.
Read our article on ‘How To Answer- Describe Your Work Ethic’ HERE.
