I've always been a great student and always had the best grades. I once thought I could do anything in life, because people kept telling me to “follow my dreams” and “do what I love” and “you'll succeed”. I could have become a lawyer, a high level manager or maybe even someone in the medical field, but I never wanted any of that. I never felt like I'd be happy in those fields and I still believe that. I don't want to do something I dislike. I never thought the money would be enough to make me happy.
Instead, I went to the path of trying to become a designer, something that I liked to do ever since I was a kid and I still love. It couldn't have been a worst decision. It doesnt matter how hard I try, how much I work, if I don't get extremely luck, I'll never be able to get above the subsistence line. Many of my friends are now in fields that have absolutely nothing to do with them or their personalities (most of them I even consider to be terrible professionals or got nepotism jobs), but at least they're not struggling like I am.
PS: I don't live in the US. Unless you work in a high-end agency, design is not a high paying field where I live. In fact, many designers that I know have to settle for minimum wage and countless additional hours of freelance work to keep things going. At 30, I feel like I need to restart my whole life to be able to get anywhere right now and I'm tired as hell. I hate everything.