Maybe they can just fall back on having discovered what they're good at, by the time they're 20, because they've had the opportunity to try many things, because their parents recognize that the job of a parent is to help children discover themselves, not fulfill their parents' ideas of success, least of all financial.
Serving at Starbucks may not seem like a 'solid' option to you, but I assure you I've met many more happy people there, than sitting in an 'open-office', being bad at their job, knowing they're bad, and still doing it, because of how 'solid' it is.
having worked at a restaurant before my first programming job, i think i get what you're saying here. i don't mind coding and i'm not bad at it, but i definitely miss the more social aspects of the restaurant job. i can imagine a lot of people being happier day to day there.
i gotta ask though, by the time they are 65 and thinking about their retirement options, who is happier?
Serving at Starbucks may not seem like a 'solid' option to you, but I assure you I've met many more happy people there, than sitting in an 'open-office', being bad at their job, knowing they're bad, and still doing it, because of how 'solid' it is.