Thank the bus driver, the ref, the custodian. Leaders see the people who make the game possible.

Every event runs on a layer of work that only becomes visible when it fails. The people doing it are used to being addressed only in complaint, which is why an ordinary thank you registers so strongly, and why noticing them says so much about a person. It also tells everyone nearby what counts as respect around here.

Learn the names of two people who keep your setting running and use them. Thank the official after a decision that went against you. Do it where your team can see, because they will copy what they watch.