Employees Appreciate Small Gestures

Today my boss gave me a wall calendar. I was surprised and pleased. It's a relatively small thing for him. He probably paid $7 for it and wrote it off as a business expense but it put a smile on my face. Here's why. Every year a vendor comes in and gives us all desk blotter/desktop calendars--the huge ones that you put under your keyboard and write on. I never take one because I don't like having it across my desk. I always wait until a week or so into the new year and buy myself a wall calendar off the discount rack. This year the boss went out and bought desktop calendars for the employees that usually get one. He also brought me a wall calendar. One I had not asked for nor mentioned. When he handed it to me, he said, "Here I got this because I know you prefer the wall ones." As simple as that and as cheap as that and I felt appreciated and acknowledged. Small gestures matter.