Is there anyone who doesn’t want a raise? When it comes to salaries, even those at the loftiest tiers always seem interested in getting more. Enough just never seems to be enough.

    When we recognize this universal preference in those who already seem outrageously well-compensated - entertainers and athletes, executives in both the public and private sectors - we are, well, outraged. And probably we ought to be. After all, in one fashion or another we help pay the tab, even when we are not particularly impressed by performance. And so we bitch and groan about their incredible selfishness and greed.

    But there's more to think about than that. What makes people always want more? Obviously, it isn’t just material need. When you’re making millions and still looking for more, we know it isn’t because you need it. That just can’t be the issue. Generally, executives are too anonymous or shrewd to speak aloud to an interested public about why they keep trying to up their earnings. Most entertainers, on the other hand, are shielded from such inquiries.

    That leaves athletes who make their millions playing games to entertain us. Routinely queried by an aggressive media, athletes often speak very openly about why they want bigger, fatter salaries. Yet what they have to say doesn’t sit well with us. They measure their earnings against those of other athletes with whom they think their accomplishments and skills are comparable, and then demand paychecks that match or beat them. When this doesn’t happen, they frequently complain and sulk, sometimes even to the point of affecting their performance. Or they demand to be traded to another team, provided, of course, that a sizable raise is part of the package. As public relations, it all stinks. But it is revealing and can help explain why we all - even you and I- want more and what happens when we don’t get it.

    Pride is one factor. Those who do better than their peers are typically prideful. They want to be the best. And the closer they get to that ideal, the more important it becomes that their superiority be recognized.

    Recognition comes in various forms, but none carries as much weight in our society as a hefty paycheck. For the prideful, salary increases are affirmations of self-perceived excellence. The principle applies to all who excel, not just those whose names show up on the front page or the sports pages. In fact, those who excel but don’t enjoy the warm glow of public adoration may be even needier in this respect since their avenues for receiving recognition are narrower and less-traveled. If you are at the top of what you do, you like to have your salary reflect that. Needing more money literally has nothing to do with it.

    The need to feel appreciated is the other factor. Even if we do not outshine others, many of us tend to our jobs, doing them reasonably well and trying to serve the interests of our employers. A journeyman ballplayer likes raises just as much as a perennial all-star. When he gets one, he feels appreciated. He probably can’t, and won’t, make as much salary noise as a star performer, but he still wants a raise. He still wants to feel appreciated . And when it doesn’t happen, the feelings of being underappreciated can magnify into troublesome performance and antagonism toward management. No organization can thrive that way.

    You may never have imagined yourself learn ing from athletes, but in this context they are teaching us lessons. Both our star performers and our steady players value recognition, and salaries are our most obvious means of delivering that. If an organization can’t offer salary increases, it has only two options: Either find another significant way to provide employees with the recognition they long for, or brace for reduced performance and increased workplace tensions. Certainly the former, although challenging, is preferable.

    Neil Murray is director of career services at UCSD.