Teachers’ work, learning, and professional development are central to any effort aiming at improving schools. Consequently, teachers must consider themselves as a lifelong learner, engage in continuous professional learning and apply that learning to improve student learning and achievement. This article explores teachers’ motivation for teaching and professional development in secondary schools in Ethiopia. Data were collected via interviews and focus group discussions from 32 teachers. The analysis of the collected information revealed low salary and the absence of link between performance and reward as major motivational challenges for teachers. The identified motivational challenges were explained from the viewpoint of different motivational theories.