Basically I'm scaling back my profit making in order to focus more on doing what I'm passionate about which doesn't have some monetary end goal. It's not practical, but provides a sense of fulfillment to me and will allow me to meet other people who are of a similar mind. I'll earn a lot less and won't have creature comforts like living with a view of the ocean, but that's just part of the tradeoff. My wife fully supports the decision.

I was raised around a bunch of conservative business owners where everything has an opportunity cost and spending time or money on something that has no tangible return value is considered silly. Not that there is anything wrong with that way of life, but it basically turns into a cycle of work, sleep, eat (which is what my life has been for the last couple years).

Agreed, the context is important. If by ending up like their parents they mean "getting old", I'm afraid there's no way to avoid that.