Tommy's appointment

I took Tommy to his doctor's appointment and the doc took some time to let me know Tommy is feeling more depressed than usual because of my job searching. (there was a lot more to it than that but in summary - and it was good conversation). He recounted a story of a very successful friend of his that ended up as a cashier. Many people have suggested that I will end up in retail at minimum wage. Is this a polite way of telling me that I'm not as good as I think I am? They nicen it with "this market just doesn't support you" but do they really mean "your fire burned out buddy! your horse died! Get off the traiL! Yer in the way!"