Plebs, I wonder if we share this in common: we live our lives out quietly, going about the work that we firmly believe has a positive impact on our future. Yet, sometimes the silence manifests as misery. A miserable feeling. A feeling that you are wasting your one precious life.

This week, such a feeling has descended on me. When I am visited by such a burden, it shows itself as resentment toward my responsibilities, intense ideation of a different life, time traveling to the past, and a desire to do nothing but seek comfort and indulge in it. It turns me into a person I don't like very much. Though I have a strong will and a moral center, I feel powerless against the weight of my own existentialism, which is something I have fought for my life to overthrow before.

I know the antidote is encouragement.

Encouragement: recognizing another and offering praise. It is important, it works miracles, and it is much needed.

Think of a newborn calf, all sticky skin and wobbly legs. The calf takes his first gulps of air and strains to lift his brand new body up to proclaim the miracle of his life. His little feet are unsteady, and he can't straighten them beneath himself. He falls in a heap of growing bones. But he tries again, and this time, mother is right there. She sees his struggle and comes near. With her nose, she gives baby a nudge. His head raises, his muscles line up in the right sequence. He stands, his first minute in the world.

The calf should illustrate the simplicity of encouragement, as well as its crucial place in our brutal world.

As a human race, unleashed on this planet, we have many factors stacked against us, hindering our success, making a peaceful existence hard-fought. In modern times, those factors have largely changed from external to internal. And internal battles are difficult to see, the carnage they result in can be hidden or disguised. So what we have is individuals that likely feel no connection to another soul, their will power withering away silently, their choices defined by survival.

I believe simple encouragement makes a difference. Acknowledgement and affirmation are precise weapons that cut down doubt and fear in one blow.

If you are building something, you likely need encouragement along the way, or else you're in danger of becoming convinced that you will never finish, or that no one will care if you finish, or that you're not capable enough to finish. One person can look into your life and your work, say, "I understand, keep going," and you flourish as a result. If you are a leader in any way, without encouragement, you risk believing the lies that can so easily creep in disguised as criticism or cynicism. You need to be reminded of your purpose, encouragement delivers this. If you are a pleb going quietly about your life, there are threats you face at every corner. Your conviction is attacked, your belief is questioned, your devotion is judged. I see you, and I'm right there with you. There are a lot of things I would wish to change, as I'm sure you would. But be encouraged, know that your commitment to the future is worthy of your work today.

I urge you, do not hesitate to dole out encouragement like its too many plums from your garden. I could use it!