Human beings enter the world highly motivated to learn. It is how we invent ourselves--a survival mechanism. So when educators talk about students who are not motivated to learn, something is amiss. Either they cannot see what motivates the student in question, or the student's life is dangerously off course. In either case, "unmotivated" behavior should register to educators as a call for help. The teacher is key to student motivation. They have immense power to unleash--or diminish--a young person's desire to learn. This author presents suggestions for teachers in identifying how to change student motivation with knowledge of three concentric circles (Personal Sphere; Social Sphere; and Academic Sphere) in which students ask key questions that affect their eagerness to learn. The author adds that teachers need to be aware of those essential questions and reflect carefully on the answers they are giving their students. A teacher can send life-changing messages when they refuse to give up on a child or approach a reluctant learner as a dreamer in need of a plan to construct that dream.