I am a perpetual optimist and I disagree that everything has been done. We have 500 kinds of deodorant because the market needs it - each one is a little different and resonates with a different consumer for some reason. Believing "we only need one thing" of anything is authoritarian.

My path out of the grind was entrepreneurialism. Much more rewarding personally and financially. Good luck to you

I don't know, I've been there and it's like I have an opportunity to learn and do something wildly different or new and that's something to look forward to even if the only person that will appreciate what I did is myself. Imagine working at google if you found a flaw in their page rank algorithm or monarch db implementation/design? That would feel gratifying. I personally don't care much if I contribute to a society that gives -1 shits about me or appreciated by coworkers that will throw me under the bus if it meant a brownie point for them (been there, done that).