I am near the 40 mark, and have never managed anybody by my own choice. Have mentored several. I have no interest in a managerial track, nor in being paid to do things that are not related to code, data quality, or other high value business needs. I have designed some very important systems and processes but shy away from calling myself an "architect". I have been the chief tech liaison with multiple partners, my bosses relying on me to not only code, but also set expectations and meet partners' business goals while protecting our own interests. I love hearing hearing about "new" frameworks and concepts from the young 'uns, and will use them if the team's vote is to adopt them (sometimes despite my opinion), even though half of them at least turn out to be short lived. It's all good. Sometimes I am pleasantly wrong and learn new ways of doing things.
My point is, I worry less about my "career goals" and spend my time learning about my employers and how to produce high value for them, whatever form that takes. I have never worried about or feared for my job.
This attitude works only if your team is not toxic and others in your team are not taking credit for the work.
In my company, if I try to do a lot of work it will backfire. I will out that my work is being celebrated by some no-talent PM and promoted by my sneaky manager without my knowledge. They then bring in all the "high priority" issues from "the top" to me to fix.
I learned that those people don't understand how software is built so I'm just coasting and doing the absolute minimum. Less credit stealing and less high priority feature requests from the top.
I still get Exceeded Expectations rating every year. Because I pretend my work is so difficult and takes so much time...
I get it. There are definitely bad companies to work for. But there's a difference between working at a company where things are fundamentally just for value producers even though there are some bad actors who can't be removed, and a company that is ultimately spiraling downward because there's no capable leadership at the top to keep people focused on what really matters to the business.
I'm not saying to subject yourself to torture: just recognize every day how you can actually deliver value for other people and the bottom line, and do it. Even if you're not getting credit, suggest to a higher up that you might not be able to do X effectively anymore because Z is in your way, and see how fast things change. It is a big difference if "X" is "deliver the feature we promised the 500K client" or "get the nightly report automated on time" than if it's "rebalance the cluster" or "streamline the CI pipeline".
The only meetings I usually call are to discuss cool things I've added to the code base and I make damn sure management is in on the invite. Leave a paper trail, never be shy about letting people know what you've done.
My situation is similar, except I'm mid 40s and more on the infrastructure side. I'm on a 6 month break from work, and have zero worries about finding my next job. I don't care about titles. I have no particular career goal. I just want to do interesting work and get good pay and benefits.
My point is, I worry less about my "career goals" and spend my time learning about my employers and how to produce high value for them, whatever form that takes. I have never worried about or feared for my job.