Quantum of appreciation

We often hear jobful (joyful?) people complaining that they aren't appreciated at work. Apparently, their seniors don't bother to let them know how good they are at what they do. The funniest part about this drama is everybody, by some twisted logic, like to believe that they are the most hardworking piece in an organization. They don't even care to understand the dynamics before jumping to the conclusion that they are underappreciated. There might be a possibility for the manager in question to have much more important things to do than pat backs. There might be a possibility that the underappreciated person isn't doing a great job to begin with. There might also be a possibility that the manager is an asshole. These are mere possibilities. A person can barely afford to have one viewpoint. And more often than not, that belongs to him/her. I don't know how to go about a situation like this when a colleague points out that the workplace isn't appreciative enough. To be fair, maybe it's high time we asked ourselves, how appreciative are we of people who work for us? The maid, security guy, liftman, peon, office boy? Like us, they are also doing their job, right?

PS. I wrote this piece because something happened at the traffic junction today. Since it rained unseasonably this morning, the signals weren't working and so, the traffic cop took over and did a splendid job at controlling the flow of vehicles. I was sitting in an auto-rickshaw, waiting on the road, wondering whether i should just get out at once and shake his hand telling him he's doing a great job. I was also wondering whether my thank-you would make a difference to his existence. By the time i could decide to get out, he had turned his face towards us signaling us to move.