I think it is great how you emphasize the effect of luck. Being in the right place at the right time is partly a matter of planning - if you have that luxury. That does not preclude the need for some luck.

I've been living in Europe for 30 years now. I've paid off one property and will pay off my others this year. That is a different but related story to your "work hard and even struggle a little more financially" that you touch on in your article.

That being said, I know that the initial job that brought me here and set me up to come back and then stay was supposed to go to another engineer. He was (and is ) really smart and got involved in another project that didn't want to let him go. That was luck. If the other project had ended, or the other engineer had really pushed, I wouldn't have been sent here and the odds that I'd be living here would be virtually zero.

Yes, I worked hard. Yes, I saved and put off short term rewards for long term rewards. But without several (I only noted one) bits of luck, I would not be where I am today.