How to Answer: “What motivates you at work?”
A complete guide to answering this common interview question — including what interviewers are really looking for, practical tips, and a worked example answer.
What interviewers are really asking
Be honest — interviewers can tell when you're performing. Describe your genuine intrinsic motivators: the type of problems you find energising, the kind of impact that matters to you. Avoid platitudes like 'I'm motivated by success' — they're meaningless.
Tips
- Be specific and honest — not performative.
- Describe intrinsic motivators, not just extrinsic ones.
- Connect your motivators to this role specifically.
- Avoid generic answers like 'making a difference'.
- Show self-awareness about what drains you too.
Example answer
Sample response
“I'm most motivated when I can see a clear line between what I'm doing and an outcome that matters to real people. In my current role, the most energising moments have been when a customer tells us we saved them hours every week — that direct feedback loop keeps me going through the difficult technical work. I also find I'm motivated by hard problems without obvious solutions — I get energy from the process of figuring out the path, not just executing a known one.”
Adapt this to your own experience — never use any example answer verbatim.
Use the STAR method
Structure your answer as: Situation (brief context), Task (your specific responsibility), Action (what you personally did), Result (the quantified outcome). Most strong interview answers follow this pattern.
Full STAR method guide