The present article highlights the importance of the motivational construct for the foreign language learning (FLL) process. More specifically, in the present article it is argued that motivation is likely to play a significant role at all three stages of the FLL process as they are discussed within the information processing model of FLL, namely, input (first encounter with the new material), central processing (connections between new material and existing knowledge), and output (demonstration of the acquired knowledge). As a consequence motivation emerges as an important predictor of individual variability in the final outcome of the FLL process, along with aptitude and learning style which are currently acknowledged by the advocates of the cognitive theories of language learning.