I rebooted my life 18 years ago when my net worth was $0 but I did have a just completed Master's Degree and just bought a fixer upper. Since then I have gone through five jobs (same one for 12 years now), 1.5 years of unemployment, a divorce, and a salary that started at $36k up to $84k in 2002, back down to $60k in 2004 and grown up to $90k now in a HCOL area. I now have a paid off house (value near $400k), $500k in various savings, and a vested pension. And now have a girlfriend worth almost $800k. Life ain't perfect, but it looks so much better today than when I started this journey.