What is the reality of a career as a ______that you wish HS kids knew before they went to college?

It is very true that people who have a low cost lifestyle have more job and career options than those who have a high cost lifestyle. The former can go into lower paying fields, or choose lower paying jobs that are better in other ways (potential for career advancement, on-the-job learning/experience, etc.), while the latter are more likely to “need” the higher paying job even if it is otherwise the less desirable one.