The ugly bit is that so many of us are engaged in work that is, at best, zero-sum economically. My sister got promoted into some mid-level compliance/oversight

The ugly bit is that so many of us are engaged in work that is, at best, zero-sum economically. My sister got promoted into some mid-level compliance/oversight role (allegedly). They'd spend all day rewriting existing policies because the department has the budget for it and needs to spend it to justify it. She was paid very well but bailed as soon as she could. Personally, I'd rather work as a grocery store clerk or something. At least I can look at the nice clean space with people able to find what they want to buy and know it's of some value to humanity.