where's the disconnect and when is it occuring?

if you ask any kid (or think back to when you were little) what he wants to be when he grows up, you will get an assortment of answers. the underlying connection between all responses is that a certain joy or feeling of success (i.e. - wealth or prestige) is implicit with the desired career. before continuing, i want to note that (and i would put money on this) all responses will represent career fields and not simply jobs. so, where is the disconnect in making sure we prepare our young people to make sure they position themselves to be successful and realize these career goals? or, is the whole exercise of asking them to think about this question in the first place purposeless? (do kids even get asked this question anymore???.....that's a really scary thought. not sure i want to know the answer to that one)

my point is not to get into a blame game, but i wanted to spark some thought into thinking about when these aspirations go out the window for people. because really, nobody says i want to be a when i grow up. the "american dream (or gangster)" pushes us towards attaining a certain level of income to be able to provide for our families and "escape" any poverty or negativity we experienced growing up. where do happiness and fulfillment come into this equation? do they take a backseat if i can make more money being miserable?

i know i am all over the place here (and definitely not finished). let me think a little bit more about where i want to go and i will come back and finish this post.