realize without it youll be unable to survive

love the american way to use the cost of living as black mail

but seriously i have no idea i have a couple part time things in college and it still sucks. it funds my weed and hobbies so its fine ig.

It helps if you have a house, wife, and kids that rely on you for support so you can't quit. Bonus, work becomes like a little vacation from your family because both are inherently stressful but in different ways.

Source: Boomer coworkers who talk about how quiet it is in this loud-ass office.

There is no reason you have to be doing the same thing for 40 years.

Do the day-to-day fairly well. See if there's other opportunities about that interest you, pay well, have a corporate structure you can withstand or have a preferable work-life balance. See where you can move to ... try to stay in industries that can withstand downturns or make yourself valuable enough.

In terms of withstanding it mentally ... find other activities and things in life that you can look forward to. Life (hopefully) isn't about work.

One pointless and stress-filled day at a time. Eventually you'll become too old to work, so there's that to look forward to. Plus, once you hit your 30s or so it starts going by faster and faster, so it'll be over before you know it

God, I wish I knew

Form a union to fight for better wages, hours, and working conditions or start a worker co-op so you can be part of a democratic workplace where you actually give a fuck about the business's success.