I'm not too sure about this. I know quite a few artists biographies, here things often involve being broke in NYC* and some drug abuse. This is the other extrem

I'm not too sure about this. I know quite a few artists biographies, here things often involve being broke in NYC* and some drug abuse. This is the other extreme, but shows how wrong things could be. If you know include the costs of the positive examples you quoted one should give it a second thought: Hard work and degrees do cost time, effort and in the worst case they trade in happiness. These choices might also cause broken hearts for those who did everything right and still blame themselves for not having their dream career. Or even worse: having the dream career and only than realizing they missed the youth of their kids or something. * something that's also totally different today, I think there is not much room (especially literally) for the poor in NYC (at least that's what I've been told, never lived there)