Speaking after Sunday's loss to Carlton - the Demons' ninth for the season - Rivers admitted it had been tough to stay positive but said that as one of the older members of the team he had a responsibility to keep spirits high.
He said he was very pleased with the senior coach Mark Neeld and the club's coaching staff and was lending support to the team's young leadership group.
Rivers was left out of the leadership group at the beginning of 2012 but his form has been very good and he was among the best again on Sunday against the Blues.
"It's definitely been tough but we've got to get that positive mindset," Rivers said.
"I'm one of the older guys and if I am looking flat and down around the young group it's definitely going to show them that I am not giving 100 per cent so [I] definitely try to keep my body language upbeat and my mindset [positive]."
While many have wondered about the senior players' attitude to the new direction, Rivers responded positively, yet realistically, when asked what he thought.
"It's going to take a while. I'm really pleased with the coaching staff and 'Neeldy' is doing a great job," he said.
"It's pretty much a whole new club came in at the start of the year and changed the whole thing so it was always going to take time to get used to. We're going to have some ups and downs but hopefully we get success sooner rather than later."
Rivers said he had no doubt it had been tough for the club's young leaders as the losses mounted but he was supportive of the group.
"I think they have handled it really well and want us older guys to give them feedback on how they and the group are going, so we try to help them out as much as we can and even though we're not in the leadership group we can still help them in many different ways."
The 27-year-old's desire for team success made him want to contribute to making the younger players better players as quickly as possible.
And he remained excited by their talent.
"They are young but I think the next few years will really show how good these young boys are," Rivers said.
Rivers was heartened by the experience of other clubs that had set about building from the ground up and thought Melbourne had the right culture to make progress.
"I think we have got that [a strong leadership group and coaching staff] so it is only going to take a few wins later in the year to get the confidence up and start a real pre-season knowing that we can improve quickly," he said.
He is holding up his end of the bargain, impressing everyone with his steel and leading from down back.
"It can change quickly," Rivers said. "We just need to believe that."
