I cannot agree with the implications of Brent's remarks that individuals don't count and that awards are meaningless or, worse, the symptom of a corrupt, politicized scientific system.
After more than 40 years of scientific research I still believe that recognition does come rather automatically and is based primarily on the quality of the scientific work, not on political maneuvering.
I have been lucky enough to receive several awards. They don't include a Nobel Prize, but I worked side by side with someone who did win one. In his case, as in mine, the awards were not sought--each was a genuine surprise. In fact, I often remark to my students that science is one of the most equitable of all human activities, comparable perhaps to athletics--it's your performance that counts, not whom you know.
It does a terrible disservice to young researchers to tell them that individual effort is meaningless ...
