[momotomo]

I've found it's more about being in the hole than getting back out. It's only when you're really, truly screwed - in the sense that you're out of your comfort zone and have no clear path forward - that real learning happens / your character comes out.

There's very few people who are decent and / or successful who haven't had some seriously hard knocks involved in shaping who they are.

Edit for anecdote: I was a mid 20's guy with an average job and bad investments that put me close to 3/4 million in debt just before the crash. A lot of pain, panic and off the cuff decisions to save my own ass, but hell, was one of the best things to ever happen to me in hindsight.