Yes. I&#x27;d say that every success is due to a combination of determination, skill, timing, privilege, and luck. (You could say that most of these are really variations on &quot;luck&quot;.)<p>Naturally, people tend to emphasize only some of these factors, depending on their own experiences, current agenda, and what kind of story they need or want to tell at the time. Each of these stories is the truth, but not the whole truth.<p>[Is this fatalistic? I don&#x27;t think so. Just because most factors aren&#x27;t under your direct control, doesn&#x27;t mean you can&#x27;t be determined and keep trying. Also you could insert here some aphorism like, &quot;it&#x27;s the journey not the destination&quot;. If you&#x27;re having any fun and even a modest amount of success, you&#x27;re quite fortunate. You could do worse. Some billions of people probably are doing worse. You may as well be appreciative and thankful, while you keep pushing forward.]