You're not stuck with a job you hate. The solution might be to change the job, or to change your attitude.
"This job is driving me crazy!"
Have you said or thought that recently? You're stressed and anxious and it's all because of your job, and if you could just get out of this job and into a different one, everything would be fine?
Maybe it is the job that's causing your stress, but before you quit in a fit of exasperation, you need to give some serious thought to the issue. Because changing your job, even a change for the better, is also a documented cause of stress. Being unemployed is an even greater cause of stress. So before you change your situation, you need to look at whether or not you can fix it.
The first question you need to ask yourself is why you took this job in the first place. Is it work you always wanted to do, work that you're good at and you feel valuable doing? Or did you somehow simply fall into this line of work and aren't even sure how you got here? Or are you fulfilling someone else's ambitions for you (usually parents) by being in this line of work?
If you find no enjoyment and fulfillment in the work itself, then you do need to change your job. This can be hard to admit to yourself if you're fulfilling a parent's dream for you, or if there was a lengthy or expensive qualification process for the job. But this is your life, no one else's, and to continue to be miserable just because a lot of time and money was invested in getting you into the situation where you are miserable simply doesn't make sense.
But take your time, even if this describes you. Before leaving the work you find unfulfilling, you need to determine what it is that you do want to do, or you could soon find yourself in the same situation. If you have hobbies, especially hobbies that you are passionate about, this could be an indicator of what you want to do with your life.
Figure out what it is that you do want to do and research the means involved to make a living doing it. There might be training involved. Stick with your current employment while you make yourself employable in your dream occupation. You'll still be in the unfulfilling job, but working toward a goal of leaving that job for what you really want to do ought to bring the stress down, because stress is generally worsened by a sense of helplessness or hopelessness.
But perhaps the above doesn't describe you. Maybe your situation is "well, the work is okay, it's the boss who's driving me crazy!"
This too might indicate time for a job change. There really are toxic bosses out there, and the sooner you can get away from them, the better.
But not so fast. This is another case for thinking it through.
I'm not going to ask you to list everything about the boss that drives you nuts; I'm sure you could fill a volume. I'm going to ask you to ponder a much harder question, one that you're not going to want to consider.
Are you sure it's the boss, and not you?
There are some easy ways to determine this. First, did you have the same opinion of your previous boss? Of more than one previous boss? Do most of your coworkers get along fine with the boss?
If the answer to all these questions is no, if you loved every previous job and admired all your previous bosses, if your coworkers, even in a soft economy, are bailing out left and right... okay then, you've got a toxic boss. Get out before stress damages your health, and find a better job, even if you have to take less pay. More money is not worth spending most of your waking hours miserable and tense.
But if the answer to any of these questions is yes, you're going to have to give serious consideration to the possibility that the stress and the personality conflicts are not coming from the boss at all, but are coming from you.
You don't want to even consider this; nobody does. But you need to give it some thought, because if this is the case, changing your job is not going to help.
To repeat: if this is the case, changing your job is not going to help.
So you need to think about this now, rather than quitting your job and finding yourself in the exact same situation at your next job. Before ten or fifteen years have gone by, and you've hated every job you ever held and now have the reputation as a malcontent, the difficult employee.
Some people live out their entire lives this way, hating their jobs and hating their bosses, filled with anger and tension. But why live like this if you don't have to?
If you've answered yes to any of the questions, and are willing to consider that the problem might reside with you, what's the next step?
You need to somehow determine what is causing you have these personality clashes with your supervisors. Maybe now that you've opened yourself to the possibility, you can simply puzzle it out on your own. Or you could go to the bookstore or library and find some self-help books about getting along with people. Or you could get some counseling.
Mental barriers might have gone up at the notion of 'counseling', but give it some thought. These days, counseling doesn't mean you have to lie on a couch every week for years reminescing about your toilet training. You can find a counselor willing to work with you on a specific issue, such as 'getting along with the people at work'.
It's probably not a good idea to try to get advice from friends and relatives. Your friends are going to want to take your side; giving unvarnished advice is not popular in most friendships. And the relative you ask for advice might be the very person you got your attitudes and beliefs from in the first place!
You don't need to spend your life in a stressful job that you hate. The solution might be to find a different job, or to find out what within you is causing the stress, but taking action is a positive step forward, away from the stress and toward fulfillment.
