I agree, I rewatched the movie this Christmas and while it was fantastic I did think about how few boundaries George had. For example there is NO REASON why he needed to give up his college plans just because his brother had a job offer for his wife's father's company. In fact his brother actually said to George "I'm not backing out of our agreement".

He also didn't stand up for himself when he could have, regarding the lost $8000, he just assumed he would go to jail even though it was Uncle Billy's fault and actually Mr Potter who STOLE the money. If the police had investigated, George would have been cleared and possibly Potter arrested (unless the police were corrupt). Regarding the Building and Loan organisation, the fact that the board made an ultimatum that George had to be chairman - he didn't even argue with them, he just assumed that it was something he had to do. There was no compromise either like - "I can return every 3 months to review it with you" or "I understand you want to do this, but I'm going to take a 2 week holiday at the bare minimum, and you guys can cope until I get back".

So while he was a very altruistic guy, I think George could have had a very similar positive impact on the town while having a happier life and less stress, by asserting boundaries and standing up for himself.