I was surfing around the blogosphere today when I came across the Manager Tools Blog.  Now, I’m not a manager (nor do I think I’m qualified or would want to be at this point in my life), but I found this blog a few weeks ago on Rickey’s (my manager) blog.  Every now and then I’ll browse through their stuff and ran across something this afternoon that I think applies to (some of) us in the IT world.  The post is titled “My Postman is Lonely.”  No, I’m not in the postal business (my patience could be described as “postal,” though).  But, the point of the post has to do with the service industry and how too often people from any “service” industry are seen as a service instead of as a person:

There are lots of people with jobs like his, where you meet lots of people but only briefly, and you’re seen as a service and not a person. Receptionists, security guards, catering staff, the man who fixes the heating and the guy who refurbishes your computer. I think they are lonely too sometimes.

It’s not a long post by any means, but I can remember not too long ago being a “service.”  Luckily, I work in a place now where people appreciate other people and work/accomplishments are rewarded.  And, by reward, I don’t necessarily mean a monetary reward – a simple “good job” or “atta’boy” goes a long way in a lot of cases.  Remember that.