Question

Recently, I read an article by Rabbi Aryeh Carmel in the journal "Ma'ayan" that discusses the apparent contradiction in the words of the Sages regarding the status of "derekh eretz" (and the balance between holiness and the "mundane"—that is, livelihood, repairing reality, and so on) in a Jew's life, and there he concludes:

And this seemingly fits the common perspective, which sees the height of human greatness as being so simple-minded from total immersion in Torah study, and everyone praises the person who does not look outside his own four cubits.
But seemingly דווקא special people are the ones who need to deal with the "normal" side of reality, and that is the whole secret of holiness within nature—which is the opposite of what seems to emerge from the words of the Sages. How does this fit together?
Thanks in advance