The study aims to increase understanding and knowledge of motivation; this by examining how the leader experiences her capability to promote employees' work motivation. Also, how employees perceive that the leader influence and enhance their work motivation. Interviews were conducted with a manager and two employees of a government agency in Sweden. The results demonstrate different opinions between manager and employees in the manager's ability to foster motivation in the everyday work. The leader thinks that she promotes her employees work positively and believes that she is giving her employees attention and appreciation. Employees mean that they lack feedback and pep talk in their everyday work. The results showed that employees believe that feedback and pep talk in everyday work is promoting work motivation. The leader believes that motivation is promoted through education and lifelong learning.