I've read several biographies of Sherman. He was particularly conflicted by his devotion to an army career and to his wife and foster father, who agitated for him to leave army life and settle down in Lancaster, Ohio, where he could be close to family and be set up in a family business. The decision was made for him when, like for so many other officers who saw little or no chance for promotion in the peace time army, Sherman resigned his commission and tried a number of civilian occupations before returning to the army in the CW. He was actually quite successful in his banking career in California, and were it not for the Panic of 1857, he might have persevered in that profession, or in his career as a college president in Louisiana. Ultimately, the outbreak of war in 1861 forced his hand, and with his family political connections and his experience as a West Point trained officer, he returned to army life. His success in the war had to give him some sense of fulfillment, if not happiness, despite an early bout with depression and doubt. Sherman was an anxious individual who abhorred a sense of anarchy, or things slipping out of control. His ability to help save the Union must have given him a strong sense of satisfaction in that regard.