The point I was getting to was that for some people, their identity is vested in their careers and/or superficial things.
Think about it from a certain perspective, I wake up every morning and go to work. I make my employer thousands upon thousands of dollars for my labor, they're definitely getting the lion's share of the rewards of my productivity but I make a very reasonable wage. Day after day, it's the same routine.. 12 hour days, on call, etc.. Something's missing, I'm happy in my career but I feel it's not enough. I see my friends.. They're marrying, they're in sustained relationships.. there's a warmth that comes from them now that is strange to me but I feel that joy, I want it for myself but how? I've been in school for so long, working so long to get to the top that I really don't know how to really establish myself within a relationship.. I'm frustrated but I am OK, I guess.
If I think about it, I've devoted myself to my work but when think about the thought of me laying in my deathbed and I think of the people I've impacted.. Will they come to comfort me in my last hours? Will the company that I've devoted years of my life to, made hundreds of thousands of dollars for..will they give a damn? Of course, my kin are always there but the thought of descending into the grave without leaving a tangible legacy would terrify me. No children, no spouse.. None to carry my memory or blood beyond my death. I'm speaking in hypotheticals but imagine getting older and wanting this but being frustrated by your inability to accomplish this for whatever reason.. Desperation can sometimes become inescapable.
This is why I ask folks what is it that you want to do on this Earth, what do you want to leave behind? Beyond a career and security.. What else is there? Money get spent, tombstones get whited to a point where names fade. Do you want to die alone or with no one (such a child, spouse, etc..) to fully cherish and/or pass off your memory to their kids?