I ran into this old guy, while working summers during college, who’s job was to move barrels of flanges around in this hot dirty factory. It was tough physical work.
I bumped into him at a local dinner, and somehow got on the subject of calculus. Turned out he had a degree in mathematics (I had just completed a differential equations course, and knew the jargon, so I don’t think he was BS-ing me). He said that he couldn’t handle the stress of that occupation, preferring to do physical labor. He justified it by saying at 5 PM he punched out, and had nothing to worry about when he went home.
I had a cousin with a similar mindset. He lacked one year of finishing his degree before getting drafted. Somehow the Army removed any desire for him to finish his degree. The remainder of his life was spent living at home doing odd jobs, working in garages or bowling alleys, etc. His brother, just as intelligent, finished his doctorate and became the head of the chemistry department at a major university.
A friend of mine quit school in 7th grade. At 18 got married and immediately had three children.
Started taking classes, got her GED, and continued classes through a PhD in Statistics at Baylor.
The human soul is very resilient, especially when it finds its niche.
Happens more that most realize.