There are aspects of luck a lot of people overlook.
Being born in a well developed nation being one of the biggest aspects. Being brought to one while still a child when their family immigrated is a very similar aspect of luck. One I am grateful for and enjoy.
Not having people be violent against you because of your success (like what happened in Tulsa, OK at what used to be called "Black Wall Street") is another aspect of luck. I have been rather lucky in this regard as well, at least so far. There have been some hate-crimes against myself and people I love. But things could definitely have been a lot worse.
Another big category of luck, is the opportunities of education and mentorship that come your way. Here again, I was extremely lucky. There were people who don't have the education to do basic arithmetic, or the ability to read or write in any language. These people were unlucky. Who knows what they could have accomplished (or could still accomplish).
There are also aspects of opportunity that fall in very idiosyncratic ways. I, like some others in this thread, have spotted and made use of money making opportunities that came my way. But I'm not certain, I'd have the success I'd have without those opportunities.
In addition, I had a rather stable family life. There were arguments, and lack of encouragement, maybe even a little active discouragement against ideas that I had (like wanting to sell lemonade as a kid). But all in all, my parents kept a roof over our heads, food on the table, clothes for me to wear and generally stayed together my whole time growing up. They encouraged my more studious pursuits, which eventually lead to what people may call a modicum success.
I was also born with a drive to always accomplish more, which I suppose is a form of luck. I was also lucky enough to be able to find the resources to do the next thing I wanted.
Overall, I have been very lucky in life, and I am grateful for that.
In addition, I do feel sorry for those who haven't had the privileges that I have had. I hope the previous sentences didn't come as bragging, because I can see that it could be interpreted that way. I have just been very lucky in many ways.
I worked hard and perhaps have some natural gifts. But there are many in my extended family who worked just as hard, and were perhaps more talented that just weren't given the same opportunities. They are still in another country-they do okay as well, but along the materialistic notions of success did not fair as well so far.
But I suppose what 'success' actually means is another debate. Personally, I think money/possessions are a horrible metric. But I find it is usually what people mean when they do any sort of comparison. The value of comparing 'successes' is perhaps another matter for debate.
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