I'm in my 40s, aimless most of my life, have been unemployed, and these are the actions I find valuable:

-Helping others learn and grow (teaching, tutoring, parenting)

-making useful things and either giving them away or selling for enough that both parties feel like they got a good deal

-gardening

-exploring the land

-hunting

-foraging

-cutting down a tree for firewood, but not just any tree; thinning the woodlot (on land that still has skeletons of old-growth Douglas-fir) all the remaining trees have room to grow big and strong

-learning to communicate with other people in their native language

-helping older folks with their tech questions, again either for free or for a sum we're both happy with (while I have a job with a government entity, I don't work full time or for enough money to support my family- my wife has the full-time career we survive on, and I support by homemaking and being the on-call parent for our school-age child with disabilities, two other actions that are valuable)

I considered a career in software development, but it's too far away from the land. I love to explore- in Richard Bartle's classifications I'm almost entirely Explorer in videogames, but I've finally kicked the gaming habit and my activities are closer to my basic needs, not layers away like the system we're in promotes. Computers are temporary. They're really interesting, but ultimately meaningless. What really matters is feeling at home on the land (including shelter, either in one place or as you go), feeding your body good food from healthy land and water, and being part of a tight-knit community.

As much as I love my public library and reading books, I have grown to accept those as luxurious layers we've made at the expense of other life on earth. I'd be happy with conversation and oral storytelling, given a healthy-enough ecosystem to support me and my community.