“He who runs behind truck is exhausted, he who runs in front of truck is tired.” - Anonymous

The Great Recession has two victims: employees who have been laid-off and are chasing the truck (a job), and employees who still have their jobs and are pumpin’ their legs like crazy, trying to stay ahead of it.

According to Dave Ulrich, HR guru and author of the classic text, Human Resource Champions, depression sets in when an employee’s perceived demands exceed their perceived resources.

Are your employees depressed? Here are 17 questions to ask, to determine if you - or your teammates - are depressed.

Answer each question on a scale from 1 to 5 as follows:

1 = I completely agree
2 = I agree somewhat
3 = I neither agree nor disagree
4 = I disagree somewhat
5 = I completely disagree

Questions:

1. I don’t feel recognized or appreciated for the work that I do.

2. I feel that my life is out of balance, with too much energy focused on work and not enough on personal and family issues.

3. I feel that no matter how much I do, it is never enough.

4. I feel unable to control the amount or quality of work I am asked to do.

5. I feel that my boss is out of touch with or doesn’t care about the realities I face.

6. I find that I’m short-tempered at work, and argue over trivial issues.

7. I find myself spending more time thinking about protecting my own career than serving our customers.

8. I don’t have fun at work and talk about how difficult work is.

9. I am being asked to do more, but I don’t feel that I have control over the resources required to do it.

10. I feel that I have little chance of real career progression, or that my career progression is outside of my control.

11. I feel overwhelmed by all I have to do just to keep up.

12. My colleagues and I talk about being burned-out by stress and pressure.

13. I’m cynical about new corporate initiatives and programs, disguised as new ways to make me work harder.

14. I find it difficult to make commitments to getting work done.

15. I don’t see anything in it for me if I work harder.

16. I don’t know how to celebrate my successes.

17. I leave work at the end of the the day knowing that I could have done or accomplished more but didn’t have the resolve to do so.

Scoring:

• 17-34: You are likely depressed, and may need to talk to your supervisor, your HR professional, or a close friend about how you’re feeling and how to alleviate some of your stress. If your workplace has an Employee Assistance Program (EAP), you may want to investigate services that are available to you.

• 35-51: You may be depressed or bordering on depression, and may need to talk to a trusted colleague about your feelings, or find a constructive way to “blow off some steam,” e.g. exercise, kick-boxing, yoga, so that you can regain your footing and come back to work more refreshed.

• 52-68: You are doing okay, all things considered. You may have a spiritual or physical regimen that helps keep you grounded during times of stress, and it’s important to continue to keep that practice, to keep your mental and physical health in top form.

• 69-85: You haven’t gotten cynical at work, and are probably a joy to work with. Keep those positive vibes flowing, and lend a smile or a kind word to those who seem like they could use it at work.