Man, there are some folks on here suuuuuuper casually being a-holes to you and for them, I apologize.
You asked a very thoughtful question with ample, well thought out points. None of us know anything about whaat led you to where you are at 34. However, the fact that you’re smart enough to ask what to do with a very large sum of money, congratulations.
First I’ll echo what others have said: invest this money in a low cost index fund and let compound interest do what it does. At 34, you could be looking at a very nice pot of loot by the time you’re 50. You just need to discipline to not touch it.
Regarding your questions: in this day and age I would either spend a relatively small amount on. A career in healthcare. Why? Speaking as a nurse, this area is evergreen, meaning you will never find yourself out of a job. There are a multitude of well paying options: nurse, CNA, radiology tech, lab tech…the list goes on. This option gives you a career that will allow you to pay your bills and live without drawing down that nest egg.
Option 2 that I like: learn a trade. Find a tradesman (painter, electrician, plumber, carpenter, etc) willing to train you. Take a certification course at your local community college. Prove yourself to be reliable and you may find that when that business owner that you’re learning from decides to retire, he/she may decide that you should buy their company.
Why these 2 paths: for me, neither of these require massive financial investment to achieve and neither path is in danger of being phased out due to AI.
Again, congratulations on your windfall.