"I once worked for a director who was very difficult in meetings. He did not interact politely with others. I took it upon myself to help this person interact better with our team and stakeholders. When he would bark orders, I would reiterate what he was trying to say to the group more professionally. It was a subtle approach, and I did so with total respect and patience. It took some time to see change, but soon he learned to communicate in a way that made people want to collaborate with him."

"In my current position, one of my senior colleagues is very cold and 'matter-of-fact' in his approach. I have worked for over ten years in the clinical lab setting and have witnessed a large variety of personalities. However, I am a warm person by nature and found it challenging to connect with this particular person. As the team lead, I needed to adapt because we collaborated on tasks nearly every day. I changed my approach with this person by sticking solely to the facts in meetings and always presenting data versus opinions. In the end, it wasn't the most profound relationship I've had in my career, but we've made it work for us and get along well enough to do our jobs and deliver reliable performance."

Tell the interviewer about a specific time you encountered a challenging boss or co-worker and successfully communicated with them and maintained a great working relationship. Outline the situation, describe why it was vital that you communicated successfully with this person, and explain the actions you took to build a healthy relationship with the individual. Your interviewer wants to see evidence that you can interact professionally and constructively with others, even if they have a challenging personality or work style.