Not everybody panic'd out like that in the depression, lots of businesses were started that indeed did fulfill people's dreams. Life does not have to be about the situation, most people just don't have clear goals and just don't work towards them every single day that they wake up. Those that do make it quite often...
Draw a goal pyramid, put your loftiest goals in the top 1/3, the intermediate goals you will have to reach to get on towards the top goals go in the middle 1/3 and the bottom 1/3 is... guess what, it's your daily chore list!! Leave it open-ended regarding the time line, keep after your daily chores and eventually you reach the top...