How long do you wait for a situation to improve?

About two months ago, I went to my boss about my job. I was thinking about leaving and had an opportunity available to me making more money. Someone else wasn't pulling her weight, and I was getting tired of pulling my own as well as hers. My boss asked me to give her some time to make things better. After a lot of thought, I called the other job to tell them to remove me from consideration.

I don't regret not persuing the other job, which I truly believe I would have gotten. It wasn't any closer to me, and I don't think I would have been happy doing what the job entailed, even for a $2-$3 an hour pay raise.

What I am finding I may regret is not looking for other opportunities. While my current job did change, and I have a lot more responsibility, the other person still isn't pulling her weight. I have a lot more work to do, which makes it impossible for me to help in other ways. Maybe it's for the best, because my other coworkers are beginning to realize how much I actually did around there. The recognition is nice, but the longer hours and working at home are not. And my pay hasn't changed either.

My boss wants to create a new position for me, but the hospital currently has a freeze on creating new positions. Our department isn't a big money-maker either, so giving us extra people is very low on the list. I think I would really like the new position, but I'm now wondering if it will every materialize.

I'm so stressed and think about work all the time now. I not only bring work home, but I bring my stress and sour moods home too. I either have to find a way to deal with all the stress, or I need to get out of there.

I know staying provides me with more opportunity for advancement in the long run. As much as I'd like to go back to school and get another job, we don't have the means. Until there are other viable options, I have to think what's the best thing to do with what I have now. If John's script ever sells (it has come so, so close), then I can take a shot at something I would really enjoy. Until then, I have to be smart, something I have done so little much of my life.

But does being smart mean staying? Or do I give up now and start looking for other jobs?

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One Year Ago Today:
Nada