The Seven Deadly Sins and Character Motivation:

The famous (or is it infamous?) Seven Deadly Sins can be a great source for interesting motivations for the bad guy of your story. Most heroes also have issues with the deadly seven. As do most people in the real world. Picking one as your character's "theme" can be a great start to creating an interesting and universal character. Here they are:

1. Pride
2. Greed
3. Envy
4. Anger (including revenge)
5. Lust
6. Gluttony
7. Sloth