If you have a stable job with good pay or good upward mobility in the company potential and don't have periods of unemployment, if it has a 401k, you're 401k is being invested while the market is down. When unemployment is high, the Federal Reserve sets the federal funds rate much lower to try and stimulate the economy. That results in lower rates for consumer loans. So people that have stable jobs that pay well enough can take out loans and/or refinance their current loans to do better than they were.

When the market recovers, you've had years of experience that you can now use for job hopping at more senior level roles when the job market recovers. Also a lot of late career people end up consulting for companies large and small with inexperienced staff. Those that didn't fare well in a career during a market downturn, it's either stagnation or hardship after hardship

It doesn't necessarily have to be office/lab work. I know people that grinded the past decade+ in restaurants until an owner would trust them to manage a restaurant including all the supplies and payroll and then trust them enough to partner on a another restaurant and then that be their ticket to financial security. Some in their 30s, some 40s, some 50s. It's a grind but at least they didn't end up drug addicts and alcoholics like so many others

Being in a non-federal government job, in a non insane state.