Most people see their job as "just a job" and for many people that's absolutely fine. They have a stable income and can do things they're passionate about in their free time. Those women you think were pushed and hate it? They sound like adults who can make their own decisions and change industries if they decide they'd rather do something they're more passionate about. I would rather have parents who support their children in whatever they want to do, but in the end tech is hardly a bad career choice to be encouraged to explore.
It is just a job... this is a crucial point. My aunt used to be a passionate dancer and the passion turned into her job. The story looks like a dream come true from the outside and the reason I spoke to her is the reason why I am ok with where I am right now. She has been living this "dream" for about 10 years by now and recently she confessed that she lost the passion only 2 years after she turned i into a job. This is a natural cycle I believe. People change, hobbies and passions change. Now I am passionate about football and my new project (the one I am secretly doing while being paid at work) is about football. I am passionate about it, but already know this is just a period of my life.
And what is your project about?
Being obsessed with football and knowing how to deal with big data, it is a challenge to put those 2 worlds together. Predicting the football results means working with big data and the results is https://rowdie.co.uk
My perspective: my parents wanted to force me to quit IT, at the time it payed peanuts in my country compared to civil engineering - what they wanted. I struggled with money for about 10 years, but now I'm making more than my former civil engineering university friends, have a lot less responsibility and I hate my job a lot less. How I explain it to myself is that my passion made me excel at my job while they do see it as "just a job".