Why is appreciation too much to ask for?  

I've had this conversation with my mother as well, so I'll give you the question I presented to her. Why should it matter so much if you receive appreciation at your job or not? You are there to work, to give your best, so extrinsic motivation shouldn't be there should it? It's a difficult mindset to develop, I know. In my job I just never saw the need to compete for appreciation. If someone did appreciate me great, but if not that's ok too. Meaning, I don't sit around moaning because someone else got employee of the year and I didn't. (My mother's favorite complaint). Perhaps if you shifted your needs slightly and looked at as a selfless job then perhaps you'd not find yourself as irritated, and perhaps you'd hear the real appreciations going on around you, because I bet they are there but just not as you wished them to be.

Namaste-Anora

That's too bad. Personally, I'm lucky enough to have a job where I have an AMAZING boss who notices all of the small "extra" things I do. I try not to take this for granted.

I used to have a boss, though, who was totally oblivious to all of the extra work I put into the store I worked at - and there's not a lot that I could do, really, except wait it out. That boss eventually got fired & was replaced with a nicer, and more appreciative boss.

So, I guess my advice to you is to keep doing what you're doing, and hopefully your boss will get fired & replaced with a nice one like mine did. :) (Okay, horrible advice, but it's all I got.)

I know exactly where you're coming from. At my work, they just kept piling more and more responsibilities on me. Then one of the main workers decided he just didn't like what he had to do, so he went on FMLA for months. I got saddled with his job too. No pay increase, of course.

I told them everyday I wanted to step down, and got ignored. Then I didn't catch a mistake that happened. I was fired. After 15 years of loyalty. Nice, eh?

Don't get me wrong. It was a lousy thing to do to me, and I'm bitter about the guy who took off for months. But now I'm not on anti-depressants anymore, don't stay awake all night worrying, don't have to stay at work till 2 hours after everyone else has left catching up on what I couldn't get done. I can actually breathe without feeling like I want the world to end.

I don't like being without work, but I can honestly say I'm happier now. I was miserable.

Your boss may be unhappy that you're pointing out what he isn't doing. Just guessing.

Wow! Another person in the printing business. I worked in silk-screening from 76 to 97. I printed 4X5 foot poster paper at one company, and T-shirts, sweats, shorts and stuff at the other.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to know you're appreciated. Unfortunately you happen to work for someone who either isn't appreciative, or doesn't know how to express it.

First rule of thumb is always do your best for you. Your best, not mediocre work, but the very best. And do it for you.

Accept the fact that with some employers all they want is the profit, they don't care about the employee, they can get new employees, we are all dispensable.

You'll probably have more jobs as the years go by, don't let this employer affect your future attitude, which would be easy to do. I've worked for numerous employers over the years and when I finally got to the place that I understood it was important to retain my integrity for myself and not for them, I was a lot happier.

I realized that if I ever got fired, it would not be for being a slacker, thief, cheat or things like that. I would be able to retain my integrity and know I did the best job I could.

As for person or persons coming along and making a mess out the shirts you straitened, up, that would have made me want to yank a knot in their butt too. That's just rude and inconsiderate, unfortunately that's what you have to deal with.

One thing you can do that will really make you feel better if you don't do it already, is praise your co-workers. It can be anything from acknowledging the press set up person for the great prints his set-ups get, to the how cool it is that the ink person is able to match the colors so good. And don't forget the new printers and catchers.

Who knows, you may start a trend.

A little acknowledgment can go along way in the kind of day a person is having. We need to do it because it's a nice thing to do.

I can assure you, if I owned a printing company, I would be proud to have you come work for me lol, you sound like a very conscientious person. I would go so far as saying you have supervisor potential.

I'm not really one who desires or cares for thanks or praise. I work hard because I expect it out of myself. I want to deserve what I earn and think it's only fair for me to do what I'm asked to do, as well as what I've not been asked to do. I am, however, thanked more than enough for my liking. I used to say to myself, if they really wanted to thank me they'd give me more money..lol. Anymore I just do what I can to help and don't complain about my earnings. I do understand why you would want to be thanked for doing something that might be considered 'above and beyond' what was expected. I'm sure for you though, the worse part is that your co-workers don't seem to appreciate the effort that you put into getting the storage area cleaned up. They should at the very least make sure to leave the area as they found it. I say Good Job to you for seeing what a mess it was, and actually doing something about it. Most workers, good and bad, would not have done what you did without being told. You are the kind of employee that any good manager or boss would LOVE to have. I wouldn't want the appreciation of a bad boss; it wouldn't mean anything to me. YOU know how good you are, that's all that matters.

it is same case with me. I am not appreciated at all at work place. rather I am always pointed at for no fault of mine. there are few guys that are just very bad. They want me to blame.