How can I quit a job that I dislike?

Look ... my job is really hurting me psychologically, and I believe I've been treated unfairly by the organisation for which I work. The whole thing has made my ADHD anxiety worse, brought my depression through the roof, and all but ended my social life (I fear I'll never get that back).

What happened is this: I worked for the local authority, but I was on a contract which had a predetermined end and my time was running out, and I had to do an interview to get the position back. Now my original position was by no means perfect or stress-free, but it was convenient because I was virtually next door to it (less than 1 mile). So I went to interview. I found out that my position had been filled - by someone who has no interest in the job, just his father had been a big donor to the authority (in a word, corruption) - and I was offered a position at one of their facilities, the best part of 25 miles away. I knew right there it would not end well, but I resisted saying what I really thought and reluctantly, I accepted, fearing basically having 0 money.

Anyway, the facility in question is desolate ... effectively all I do is preside over an empty building ... empty, barely lit corridors with files randomly lying about the place, full of junk that hasn't been working for years. There's no team at all like there had been at my previous job, not much customer interfacing, which is just soulless not to have any human interaction, really you don't know how badly that impacts your mental health until you are right in the middle of it. Over 65% of the time, I'm the only person in the building (why the hell is it still open? God knows).
Like I implied, I don't really have anything to do there. I've got ADHD, and I think a lack of anything to concentrate on is making my ADHD worse. It's pretty nihilistic, the sheer worthlessness that I've been made to feel with this job has also made me turn to alcohol more, I'm not an alcoholic, but I still don't think its healthy, though I can hardly cope otherwise.

All in all, the pointless and soul-crushing nature of the job, combined with the aggravating circumstances in which I ended up there, are bringing my mental wellbeing down more than I can cope with.

Ideally, I would want to get another job, but I have very specific qualifications which I don't want to go to waste, and jobs requiring or favouring those don't show up very often.

Basically, I want to know how I can quit without making myself look like a victim.

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 1

CompSciJP

Why would you think leaving your position would make you look like a victim?

You are best suited to finding a replacement role, providing your two weeks' notice, and departing gracefully. In doing so, express your gratitude to colleagues and your line manager for the valuable experience gained. You can mention that while you appreciate the opportunity, you believe your current position does not align with the expectations you had when you initially applied for the role.