In high scool I got praised for writing great applications. At college I got praised for writing great applications. Even at my first professional jobs I got praised for writing awesome code.
I have to admit, getting praise/recognition for my work is a huge inspiration. It makes me want to do 100 times better. And I usually did just that.
This morning however, 2 years on and feeling down about work, I noticed that the recognition was gone. Without a bit of praise work just seems to have much less meaning. "Should I blame the managers?" I thought.
Then I realized - the lack of recognition comes from my position in the hierarchy. In the past I always had a teacher, trainer, team leader or architect above me. Those were the ones giving the praise and inspiration. Now I'm level with my fellow developers and the only ones above us are the managers.
My conclusion - If you're in a senior position, take some time to praise the guys that are doing good work. It really makes a difference. As for lack of recognition for the senior guys, guess that's why they pay us the big bucks.