We all have our favorite teachers. Maybe it was the teacher who would give your class candy after a test, or the teacher who pushed you until you discovered the limits you set on yourself weren’t really limits at all. Regardless, teachers and college professors can make your year fulfilling and exciting — or, a living hell.

Conventional wisdom is when you have a professor you really like, you are more motivated to do well in his or her class. Maybe that’s not true for everyone, but I know it’s true for me. When I’m more motivated to do well in a class, I know I get more out of it, even if it’s subjects I’m not fond of.

I recently did a survey of some students on campus and identified the traits they thought made a good teacher. I tried to blend some together and highlight the main points:

Creativity. I realize lecturing is sometimes unavoidable but it is too easy to loose students when a class is stagnant with lectures. Throw in a game or a funny video here and there. A few weeks ago we played monopoly in my sociology class to learn about social stratification. I walked away from the experience with an understanding of the topic and was looking forward to the next class.

Respect. And yes, this goes for students too. If professors treat their students with respect, the students will likely return the favor. Treating students like children will makes students want to play the role of children. Scolding as a first approach will only drive us away. It should be self-explanatory to bring professionalism and respect to the table.

No busy work. Giving homework and class work is fine. But understand that students have other classes and a life aside from your class. Giving us pointless assignments is not sensible or stimulating.

Admit fault. Nobody is perfect. If you make a mistake, own up to it. Admitting fault is always better than blaming it on us or coming up with excuses. For example, if you put a review problem on the board in a class of 300 students and no one can tell you the answer, it’s probably not the best idea to say, “You guys need to pay more attention.” If you went over it properly, at least one person out of the class would be able to answer it. This happened in one of my classes last week and the teacher replied with, “I obviously didn’t do a great job last class. Let’s go over this again…” Students whipped out their notes and listened to what he had to say.

Humanize yourself. I’ll admit, when I see one of my professors at a coffee shop or somewhere around campus, I get that butterfly feeling like I’m seeing a celebrity. But when professors start the first class of the semester with some background information, like where they went to school and what they like to do, it reminds students that professors aren’t just robots; they’re human too.

Lastly, and most importantly, like what you do! I know we all have our good and bad days, but it’s always refreshing seeing a professor anxious to start the class. Being excited about a certain topic can spread around the classroom — this goes for students too. We have the opportunity to get a great education at a great school. That should be reason enough for excitement.