Employee appreciation quotes: 60 real quotes and 50 messages to thank your team
Quotes and messages to thank your team, each with a copy button. Every quote checked against its source.
KraftyLab TeamUpdated 12 min read
Most employee and staff appreciation quotes online come without a source, and plenty carry the wrong name. These 60 were checked one by one, against the speaker's own book, letter or speech, or the sourced section of their Wikiquote page. They're sorted by what you're writing: a card, a recognition post, a thank-you for good work or a note to the whole team. Below them are 50 employee appreciation messages we wrote ourselves, five habits that make a thank-you land, and the date of the next Employee Appreciation Day.
Short employee appreciation quotes for a card or a slide
Twelve words or fewer, so they fit inside a card, on a slide title or above a gift tag.
1
Our praises are our wages.
William Shakespeare, playwright
2
Well done is better than well said.
Benjamin Franklin, American founder
3
Every one likes a compliment.
Abraham Lincoln, 16th US president
4
Give honest and sincere appreciation.
Dale Carnegie, author and teacher
5
Gratitude is the sign of noble souls.
Aesop, fable writer
6
Praise the bridge that carried you over.
George Colman the Younger, playwright
7
Work is love made visible.
Kahlil Gibran, poet
8
Thank you for making this day necessary.
Yogi Berra, Yankees catcher
9
Gratitude is the memory of the heart.
Jean Massieu, teacher of the deaf
10
People who feel good about themselves produce good results.
Ken Blanchard, management author
11
Criticize by category, praise by name.
Warren Buffett, investor
12
The still small voice of gratitude.
Thomas Gray, poet
Employee recognition quotes
On why praise works and how to give it, from managers, psychologists and a few writers who were good at it. Several of these make good appreciation quotes for a boss, too.
13
All of us have special ones who have loved us into being. Would you just take, along with me, ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are.
Fred Rogers, children's TV host
14
I have yet to find the man, however great or exalted his station, who did not do better work and put forth greater effort under a spirit of approval than he would ever do under a spirit of criticism.
Charles M. Schwab, steel executive
15
The deepest principle of Human Nature is the craving to be appreciated.
William James, psychologist
16
There is a great man who makes every man feel small. But the real great man is the man who makes every man feel great.
G. K. Chesterton, writer
17
The key to developing people is to catch them doing something right.
Ken Blanchard, management author
18
I have been complimented many times and they always embarrass me; I always feel that they have not said enough.
Mark Twain, humorist
19
The difference between appreciation and flattery? That is simple. One is sincere and the other insincere. One comes from the heart out; the other from the teeth out.
Dale Carnegie, author and teacher
20
Don't work for recognition, but do work worthy of recognition.
H. Jackson Brown Jr., author
21
'Tis something to be willing to commend; But my best praise is, that I am your friend.
Thomas Southerne, playwright
22
You get the best effort from others not by lighting a fire beneath them, but by building a fire within them.
Bob Nelson, employee recognition author
23
Fail to honor people, they fail to honor you. But of a good leader, who talks little, when his work is done, his aims fulfilled, they will all say, ‘We did this ourselves.’
Lao Tzu, Chinese philosopher
24
The applause of a single human being is of great consequence.
Samuel Johnson, lexicographer
Gratitude quotes for work
Older than any management book, these make good thank you quotes for employees: for a thank-you post, a toast at the team dinner or the top of a year-end note.
25
There is nothing which I can esteem more highly than being and appearing grateful. For this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues.
Cicero, Roman statesman
26
He who receives a benefit with gratitude, repays the first installment of it.
Seneca, Stoic philosopher
27
Thus we have each of us cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flames within us.
Albert Schweitzer, doctor and theologian
28
Gratitude plants the seed for abundance.
Robin Wall Kimmerer, botanist and author
29
You can't live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.
John Wooden, UCLA basketball coach
30
When a person doesn't have gratitude, something is missing in his or her humanity.
Elie Wiesel, author and Nobel laureate
31
'Tis hard, I admit, yet virtue aims at what is hard, and gratitude for such a service will be all the greater.
Ovid, Roman poet
32
Your bounty is beyond my speaking; But though my mouth be dumb, my heart shall thank you.
Nicholas Rowe, playwright
33
To receive honestly is the best thanks for a good thing.
George MacDonald, Scottish novelist
34
I can no other answer make but thanks, And thanks, and ever thanks.
William Shakespeare, playwright
35
Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.
Warren Buffett, investor
36
Of my grandfather Verus I have learned to be gentle and meek, and to refrain from all anger and passion.
Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor
Appreciation quotes for good work
For praising the work itself: the care, the craft and the small things done right.
37
Remove barriers that rob the hourly worker of his right to pride of workmanship.
W. Edwards Deming, quality pioneer
38
Give them quality. That's the best kind of advertising in the world.
Milton Hershey, chocolate maker
39
Remember, work, well done, does good to the man who does it. It makes him a better man.
George S. Clason, author
40
Nothing is denied to well-directed labor; nothing is ever to be attained without it.
Joshua Reynolds, painter
41
If you want work well done, select a busy man: the other kind has no time.
Elbert Hubbard, writer and publisher
42
There ain't no man can avoid being born average. But there ain't no man got to be common.
Satchel Paige, baseball pitcher
43
Little things are big.
Yogi Berra, Yankees catcher
44
To rank the effort above the prize may be called love.
Confucius, Chinese philosopher
45
A cartoonist is someone who has to draw the same thing day after day without repeating himself.
Charles M. Schulz, Peanuts creator
46
To business that we love we rise betime, And go to 't with delight.
William Shakespeare, playwright
47
Disneyland is a work of love. We didn't go into Disneyland just with the idea of making money.
Walt Disney, animator and producer
48
‘Too much trouble,’ ‘Too expensive,’ or ‘Who will know the difference’ are death knells for good food.
Julia Child, chef and TV host
Want words of your own for a specific win? Our job well done messages have 135 ways to say it.
Thank you quotes for coworkers and teams
For the people who carried part of the load. Most of these work as well from one coworker to another as from a manager to the team.
49
Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn't consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day?
Lou Gehrig, Yankees first baseman
50
‘Men work together,’ I told him from the heart, ‘Whether they work together or apart.’
Robert Frost, poet
51
The good particular men may do separately, in relieving the sick, is small, compared with what they may do collectively.
Benjamin Franklin, American founder
52
It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.
E. B. White, Charlotte's Web
53
Teamwork is what the Green Bay Packers were all about. They didn't do it for the individual glory. They did it because they loved one another.
Vince Lombardi, Packers coach
54
A friend who offers help without asking for explanations is a treasure beyond price.
Robert A. Heinlein, science fiction writer
55
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.
John Donne, poet
56
Many hands make light work.
John Heywood, Tudor writer
57
No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of it for any one else.
Charles Dickens, novelist
58
I can't carry it for you, but I can carry you and it as well.
J. R. R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings
59
A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labours of other men, living and dead.
Albert Einstein, physicist
60
It is to take pride in a victory won by one's comrades. It is to feel, when setting one's stone, that one is contributing to the building of the world.
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, aviator and author
For more on working together, see our checked teamwork quotes. For a note from one coworker to another, our thank you messages for coworkers cover help on a project, a covered shift and more.
50 employee appreciation sayings and messages we wrote
These are ours, not quotes, so they carry no name. Copy one into a card, a chat message or the team channel, then add one specific detail only you know. Celebrating years of service instead? Try our work anniversary messages.
For an employee
1
Thank you for the care you put into your work. It shows in the details, and people notice.
2
You make hard things look calm. Thank you for being the steady one on this team.
3
You rarely ask for credit, so here it is: this team runs better because of you.
4
Thank you for asking the question everyone else was thinking. It saved us a week.
5
Your work this year made my job easier and our customers happier. Thank you.
6
You never wait to be asked. Thank you for seeing what needs doing and doing it.
7
Thank you for teaching the new people so patiently. They'll pass it on.
8
Thanks for bringing good humor to long days. It matters more than you think.
9
I appreciate how you own your mistakes and fix them fast. It makes everyone braver.
10
Thank you for being the person people trust with the hard stuff.
For the whole team
11
This team showed up for each other all year. Thank you, every one of you.
12
Look at what we finished this quarter. None of it happened by accident. Thank you, team.
13
Thank you for covering for each other without being asked. That's what makes this a team.
14
We had a hard month and you still made time to help each other. I'm grateful.
15
Every launch has a hero list. This time it's the whole team. Thank you.
16
Thanks, team, for the late fixes, the quick reviews and the good jokes in between.
17
You make this a place people want to work. Thank you for that.
18
Quiet thanks to everyone whose work never makes the slide but holds the whole thing up.
19
We set a tough goal and you hit it together. Proud of every one of you.
20
Thank you for the patience, the honesty and the effort. It added up to something good.
For your boss or manager
21
You defend our time and our work in rooms we never see. Thank you.
22
You give clear feedback and fair credit. Thank you for being that kind of manager.
23
Thanks for trusting me with the big project. I learned more than I expected to.
24
You make time for us even on your busiest days. We notice, and we appreciate it.
25
Thank you for saying no to the wrong work so we could do the right work.
26
I've grown more in a year on your team than in the three before it. Thank you.
27
Thank you for leading by example, especially on the hard days.
28
You pass the credit down and take the heat yourself. Thank you.
29
Thank you for asking how we're doing and actually waiting for the answer.
30
Working for you has been a lesson in how to treat people. Thank you.
For a job well done
31
That launch went smoothly because you planned for every way it could go wrong. Well done.
32
The client renewed, and they named you in the email. Great work.
33
The brief was one line long, and you came back with exactly what we needed. Nicely done.
34
Your numbers this month speak for themselves. Thank you for the extra push.
35
That fix saved us a weekend. Thank you for staying with it until it worked.
36
Your new checklist cut our review time in half. Thank you for building it.
37
Clean, clear and early. That report was a pleasure to read.
38
You handled a tough conversation with grace. That's harder than any spreadsheet.
39
Your first big project, and you nailed it. I can't wait to see what's next.
40
Thank you for doing the unglamorous part well. The whole project rests on it.
For Employee Appreciation Day
41
Happy Employee Appreciation Day. What you do here matters, today and every other day of the year.
42
Today we say out loud what we think all year: thank you for your work.
43
Happy Employee Appreciation Day to the people who make this company what it is.
44
One day isn't enough to thank you, but it's a good place to start. Happy Employee Appreciation Day.
45
Lunch is on us today, and so is the thank-you. You earned both.
46
Today is for you. Take the long lunch, close the laptop early and know you're appreciated.
47
Happy Employee Appreciation Day. We see the effort, the care and the extra hours. Thank you.
48
To everyone who answers the late messages and fixes the last bug: happy Employee Appreciation Day.
49
Thank you for choosing to do your best work here. Happy Employee Appreciation Day.
50
Celebrating the people behind every win this year. Happy Employee Appreciation Day, team.
How to write a thank-you that lands
A good thank-you is short, specific and on time. Five habits, each with a weak version and a better one we wrote.
Name the thing. “Thanks for all your hard work” could go to anyone. Say what they did and when. Warren Buffett's rule fits here: criticize by category, praise by name.Weak: Thanks for all your hard work.Better: Thanks for rebuilding the onboarding deck on Tuesday. Both new hires said it was the first one that made sense.
Say what it changed. Effort is nice to notice. Results are better: the customer who stayed, the hours saved, the mistake that never shipped.Weak: Great job on the proposal.Better: You caught the pricing error the night before. The proposal went out right, and we won the account.
Send it this week. Thanks that waits for the annual review arrives after everyone has forgotten the details. A late thank-you still beats none, so own the delay and send it.Weak: Saving this for your review: nice work on the client call back in March.Better: I meant to say this on Friday: the way you ran that client call was excellent.
Ask how they like to be thanked. Some people love a shout-out in the team channel. Others would rather get a private note. Ask once, in a one-on-one, and remember the answer.Weak: Everyone, a round of applause for Sam! (Sam hates this.)Better: Quick one for my notes: when you've done great work, would you rather get a shout-out in the channel or a note just to you?
Let the quote support you, not replace you. A quote on its own reads like a poster. Put your sentence first and the quote after it, or leave the quote out.Weak: “Our praises are our wages.” (William Shakespeare)Better: You turned a messy quarter into our best one. Max De Pree wrote that a leader's last job is to say thank you, so: thank you.
Try the Marcus Aurelius exercise
Marcus Aurelius opened his Meditations with a list of what he learned from each person in his life, one line each (quote 36 is the first). It works for a team, too. Before a year-end note, write one line per person: “From Priya, how to run a calm incident call. From Marco, how to say no without burning a bridge.” Send each person their line. For a fuller system, see our employee recognition ideas and how to build an employee recognition program.
When is Employee Appreciation Day?
Employee Appreciation Day 2027 is Friday, March 5, 2027. It falls on the first Friday in March every year. Bob Nelson, the author of 1001 Ways to Reward Employees (his line on lighting a fire within people is on our list), started it in 1995. It isn't a public holiday, so offices mark it however they like: a team lunch, handwritten cards, an afternoon off or a hosted event. Our employee appreciation day guide has a full list of ideas.
Thank your team with more than a quote
A quote in a card is a start. When the team has earned more, a live host can run an hour for them on your video call, on Zoom by default (Teams, Google Meet or Webex on request). Gratitude Games & Grins is a game hour built around thanks, with small teams that reshuffle every game. Candle Making ships a kit to each person, so everyone keeps a candle they made. Teams spread across time zones can book two sessions so nobody joins at midnight. Book about 2 weeks ahead, or about 3 weeks for kit sessions so every kit arrives in time. For year-end thanks, December dates fill first.
What are some good appreciation quotes for employees?
Fred Rogers's “All of us have special ones who have loved us into being,” from his 1997 Emmy speech, suits a thank-you to a mentor or a long-time manager. G. K. Chesterton's “the real great man is the man who makes every man feel great” works in a card for anyone who lifts a team. Both are in our list, with their sources checked.
What are some short appreciation quotes for work?
Try “Our praises are our wages” (William Shakespeare), “Well done is better than well said” (Benjamin Franklin) or “Criticize by category, praise by name” (Warren Buffett). Every quote in our short list is 12 words or fewer, so it fits in a card or on a slide.
What do you write in an employee appreciation message?
Name the specific thing the person did, say what it changed, and send it within a few days. Two or three sentences is plenty. Our 50 messages are a starting point; for notes between coworkers, see our thank you messages for coworkers.
When is Employee Appreciation Day?
Employee Appreciation Day is the first Friday in March. In 2027 it falls on Friday, March 5, 2027. Bob Nelson, the author of 1001 Ways to Reward Employees, started it in 1995. It's an observance, not a public holiday, so offices mark it however they like. See our employee appreciation day ideas.
Did William James say “The deepest craving of human nature is the need to be appreciated”?
Not in those words. In an 1896 letter to his Radcliffe philosophy class, printed in The Letters of William James (1920), he wrote: “the deepest principle of Human Nature is the craving to be appreciated.” The popular version is a paraphrase of that line, which is on our list.
Did Voltaire say “Appreciation is a wonderful thing”?
We couldn't confirm it. The line “Appreciation is a wonderful thing: it makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well” is all over appreciation lists, but it isn't on Voltaire's Wikiquote page and we found it only in modern quote collections, not in anything he wrote. We left it off.
What's the difference between an employee appreciation quote and a message?
A quote is something a real person said or wrote, so it carries their name. A message is your own words to a specific person or team. The quote can open a card, but the message is the part people remember, so write one either way.
Thank your team with more than a quote
A live host runs an hour of games or a kit workshop for your team on your video call. Send your date and headcount for a plan within 24 hours.
