Off topic: I'll have to give Chris a little love here as I have two older brothers who have been earning full-time salaries in the music biz before they graduated HS... one is in his 70's, the other in his 50's. Both are pretty cynical about the opportunities in the music biz, and have been since the late 80's. They have reason and can proffer countless rise and fall stories of countless individuals dating back to the 60's. And really, at this point in time, every profession is becoming so competitive that cynicism can derail the best laid plans of any career.
But I have to ask Chris, since you are so into social stats and studies and whatnot, what do the studies reveal about the greatest regret that people have as they are nearing the end of their respective lives... if they could change one thing about their lives, what would it have been? Do tell!
On topic: I think
@JohnG pretty much nailed it... find what you're passionate about, hop that 10,000-hour train, and ride that mother until you're the absolute best you can be at what you're doing... and maybe end up being one of the best in the world. Personally, I think the niche route is the better track... find an area underutilized or out of vogue and become the go-to guy for that style, sound, skill-set, whatever.