Perspectives on Economic Roles

There are two major perspectives on fulfilling a role in the economy. 

1) The world only cares about what it can get from you.

Exemplified by the classic Alec Bladwin lecture in Glengarry Glen Ross, this is the view that one is only as valuable as their output or contribution. "Good father? F**k you." It paints ones function in the economy as a game where how in demand you are and how much money you collect is a measure of your value.  
Be the cog in the machine and you will get work. 

One example of this idea in action is computer science and coding. I've heard countless times how in demand programmers are. Just learn to code and somebody will hire you. Seeing the benefits programmers receive in Silicon Valley (evidence of a tight labor market) backs this up.

While this viewpoint is highly mechanistic and pessimistically simplifies one's value in the economy into do or die framing, there are ways to see it in a more positive light. In order to have high quality output, you need to be meeting the needs present in society. Programmers are in demand because our society desires more technological developments and infrastructure. As such, by catering to the high demand areas in society you are catering to the needs of the society itself. 

However, we know needs are not the same as what is best for society. High frequency traders are in demand right now, but you have to tell an abstract story why HFT is beneficial for society. One could say the same about the demand for heroine producers and porn stars, both pay very well.

2) Be a creator

Sometimes it is easy to forget that a significant portion of our economic activity stems from people creating new needs for society.

This can be interpreted in terms of inventing new products or starting a new business whereby one is providing a new good or service to the marketplace. Also, it can apply to the producer of cultural products like music, books, and art. 

It is hard to say that society needed Harry Potter books before JK Rowling wrote them, but look at how successful she is.

These two perspectives are not exclusive of each other and every person can transition between or fulfill both at the same time. 

It is also worth noting that one may reject both paths and not participate at all. It is healthy for this to occur some of the time as the two perspectives above both frame humans as producers. It does not seem correct that humans should be obligated to constantly output like a machine or slave, or maybe all human activity is inherently an output of some sort or another...

Finally, the question of what is ethical activity is another wrinkle to finding your place in society. It is important to never conflate economic value with ethical value. American society falls into this temptation almost religiously by conflating wealth with merit, which is wrong. Economic success does not care about how good or bad a father you are. As you see above, you can fulfill major roles in society and take care of your material needs without thinking about ethics at all, but you need to!!