It was one of the earliest ‘big’ presentations of my career, it must have been in 2001 give or take a year, to around 100 people in London. The other two speakers both had a big reputation, I wasn’t expecting anyone to be interested in what I had to say.

After we each finished speaking, crowds of people surrounded the other two speakers to chat with them. To my surprise and delight, I had a queue of people wanting to talk to me as well. I asked each person what they took from the presentation. I expected them to tell me that they had new ideas of how to find or inspire people to refer to and support them.

But no, the main takeaway by far was to thank people. I had talked about how important it is to show gratitude and appreciation when people help us. You don’t have to make it a grand gesture, a simple handwritten thank you card can have a huge impact. You’ll see strings of them on the wall and across my bookcase behind my head if you speak to me on Zoom or Teams.

If you do make a bigger gesture, make it personal. It’s shocking how many bottles of wine or whiskey are given away each year to teetotallers, or just people who enjoy a different tipple. Show that you are genuinely thinking about the other person and add meaning to your gesture of appreciation by showing that you know them.

Whatever you do, even if things haven’t worked out, make sure that others know that you appreciate their support. Make them feel good about helping you and they’ll want to do it again.