I tend to think that somebody who's got something to say will say it no matter - and I tend to agree with Jim, with Ives as an example; I never was aware that his heart attacks were related to his day gig; is there documentation of this? My day gig is torture, yes, but he made more money than I do, in relative terms. Though the odd thing is that I also have the feeling that if I had not been in as culturally backward a place like Maine all these years, I might not have done as many interesting things as I have done. So it worked out, though I am ready to get the f*** outta here asap. But sometimes it all sorta balances out. As someone else pointed out, if Solzyneitisn (spell it any way you want) wrote novels while he was in the Gulag, we can do something while we suffer in Suburban hell. And it's ALWAYS good, from a quality standpoint, not to be in academia, though I wouldn't turn them down either. And Lewis Porter, at Rutgers these many years, is to my ears the most interesting pianist performing today.
and by the way, wanted to mention that mastering engineers HAVE changed my life - David Baker, John R.T. Davies, Doug Pomeroy....