We've all had jobs that are seemingly impossible to tolerate. Whether it's a poor boss, negative corporate culture, or simply a friction of ideas, there are sometimes factors beyond our control that limit our success. What you make of these situations determines how they will affect your success.
Consider really what you lose when you lose a position: First and foremost, there is income (including insurance); then there is the social atmosphere; and finally the sense of security. While all of these can easily cloud one's mind when trying to consider future prospects, a careful examination of the benefits of leaving a company might at least temporarily relieve some of your anxieties.
Many tend to think all is lost when leaving a job. Sure it makes for a few bad days, weeks, maybe even months, but inevitably opportunity will arise (if you seek it out). In leaving a particular workplace-don't dwell on whether it was by choice-you have gained invaluable life experience and an array of new skills. These two alone will assist you when selecting a new place of employment. If anything, you will be more careful about your future career choices.
This is not to say that staying in a bad situation is unproductive. In many ways, it is, with the knocks you take from a poor boss, and the need to always to compensate for his or her incompetence, serving a far greater purpose in the future. Consider a future job opportunity where the company has to decide between you and another candidate who has been through a relatively lax work environment throughout his or her career. More times than not, you will be the candidate they choose if you have properly positioned yourself by expressing just how you've excelled within difficult circumstances and taken on the mantle of other's duties for the betterment of the company's goals.
The main idea is to not give up hope. You're in a similar situation to a lot of people, many of whom simply quit, took lower-paying positions, and settled on the mediocrity to which they'd been conditioned. But not you. Certainly I, and my other colleagues within career coaching, are here to listen to you and help redirect your goals to more positive ends. In the end, though, it will be up to you and your willingness to take the necessary steps to improve your future. Résumé, counseling, and job assistance, can all play a role in that, but never forget, you are the key. So tell me, what have you learned from your negative job experience?