With all the bad news around lately, I’m surprised any of us are getting out of bed in the morning.

Just yesterday a friend I worked with said he felt flat and uninspired – like he was tired of pushing a heavy wheelbarrow up a hill that never got any shorter.

I hear this sentiment echoed in many workforces. And often by  highly motivated people who don’t need a “pick me up” or a pat on the back, but who thrive on challenge and typically just get on with things.

We can all get to the point of wondering whether it’s worth the effort. Whether we should continue to strive. Maybe it would be easier to turn back the throttle a notch and just get by.

How can we help people in this position – or ourselves for that matter? Is it about looking for the internal fortitude to just keep going – to try harder – to not be such a pessimist?

I’m not sure there’s any one “right answer”, but have a read of this post on Slacker Manager. It’s a story by Steve Farber - author of Greater Than Yourself: The Ultimate Lesson of True Leadership - addressing this dilemma.

He talks about focusing on helping someone else excel, rather than on how you are feeling. In  a world where the news and environment forces us to focus on our personal circumstances and worth on a daily basis, this is a refreshing shift in perspective.