My employee has a terrible attitude… for a good reason

A reader writes:

I manage an employee who, quite frankly, has a bad attitude. Negative about everything: our jobs, our clients, life in general. Cloud with continuous rain. He lowers morale considerably, and other employees have commented to me how difficult he is to work with.

Where I struggle is that I have a lot of sympathy for him and the many health problems he has faced over the years. He was in a car accident that left him with significant injuries, he was diagnosed with a chronic illness that left him in constant pain, and he also suffered the sudden death of a sibling. I feel like I would also kind of hate the world. How do I resolve this without causing another blow to his mood?

I answer this question – and two others – today in Inc. In, where I’m revisiting letters that are buried in the archives here from years ago (and sometimes updating/expanding their responses). You You can read it here.

Other questions I’ll be answering there today include:

• Can I give a gift to one employee but not another?
• Dealing with infertility in a baby-talk-heavy office