I have been looking into careers and college majors where I can make good money. I am inspired by jobs like software engineering - are there better paths than this?

One of the many life lessons that Star Wars attempts to teach is that picking your direction solely on the basis of hoping for money is not wise: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000402/:   It's not over yet. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000148/:    It is for me, sister. Look, I ain't in this for your revolution, and  I'm not in it for you, Princess. I expect to be well paid. I'm in it for  the money. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000402/:   You needn't worry about your reward. If money is all that you love, then that's what you'll receive.  [to Luke] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000402/:   Your friend is quite the mercenary. I wonder if he really cares about anything. Or anybody.  [she stalks out] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000434/:  [calling after her] I care.  [to Han] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000434/:   So, what do you think of her, Han? http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000148/:   I'm tryin' not to, kid. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000434/:   Good. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000148/:  [baiting him] Still, she's got a lot of spirit. I don't know, whaddya think? You think a princess and a guy like me... http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000434/:  [quickly] No. Software development is a challenging field that requires a lot of study and thinking (i.e. hard work).   If you don't have an appetite for software development, than a career in software development probably isn't going to bring you enough money to pay you for the effort.   It helps a lot if you actually enjoy the work. It is hard to find a job that pays well without a lot of work.   Sounds like you aren't giving consideration to skilled professions that involve perhaps getting your hands dirty. (e.g. plumber).   The time to train for such a job is probably less and the cost less than getting through college, and the rewards are probably proportionate to the effort you are willing to put into doing the work. If you have an idea for creating a company, the rewards of getting to an IPO from scratch can be large (though the chances of coming up empty handed are large too).  But first you need an idea...