Are you “passionate” enough about flying that you’d still want to pursue the profession even if the outlook was shaky and there was no “Golden pathway”? There are no guarantees. Would you pursue it if it meant a few years of flying in Alaska or the Caribbean, then maybe a middling corporate gig?
If you’re not sure, then you aren’t as “passionate” as you might think, and you should reassess based on a realistic outlook.
Starving artists are “passionate.” Starving pilots are usually nuts.