I wouldn't be to hard on yourself. In the US we seem to have entered a period of economic decline that we enjoyed in the aftermath of WW2. Now people try to measure themselves against a standard that's no longer so readily available.
In addition, we seem to be in a period of social decline where many of the community oriented aspects of society, such as clubs, that allow us to form long-term connections are also disappearing and we are isolated from each other.
I only have personal knowledge of the US but it seems like other developed nations have similar problems.