> it was mind boggling how anyone would ever want to use it or even become an expert in using it.

As in a lot of cases, the answer is money. If you have expertise in Salesforce, you can get paid a lot, especially if the company you contract/freelance for is in an "emergency" which, because they use Salesforce, they'll eventually be. As long as you get the foot in the door, you'll have a steady stream of easy money. It fucking sucks though, the entire ecosystem, not for the weak of heart.