RE: Luck and being born with profitable traits
To be sure, there is a lot of privilege that comes with being born into the right family.
That said, there is also a lot in your control. Hard work and persistence pay off more often than "natural talent". The thing is some of us grow up with parents or adults that model that for us, while others do not.
There is a lot of truth that you create "luck" by steadily improving yourself -- learning, practicing, creating, doing. When the right opportunity presents itself, you're ready because you prepared instead of sleeping on the couch.
So absolutely, you're lucky if you're born into a family or community that instill these values in you.
But I've known plenty of "less fortunate" people who woke up and realized they had a lot more control than they thought.
This cuts many ways, though. When life is going well for you, it's hard to understand why everyone can't see it like you. It's easy to downplay other people's struggles. When life's not going well for you, it's easy to chalk it up to being unlucky.
The truth is: life is a process. We all take it one step at a time, wherever we started out, whatever family we were born into.
I think it's best to take people wherever they're at and encourage them to take the next necessary step. More "luck" will find them that way, more "luck" will be passed on to their kids.
How much drive do you have? Where did it come from?
The capacity for working hard (being driven) is also genetic. The capacity for risk taking (genetic), the psychotic level of dedication (genetic), isn't something people are taught. Some have it and develop it further and some just never had it. For example you can take athletes and among athletes they all have talent. Do they all work equally hard? Do they all train psychotically? An examples of this are Pistol Pete Maravich, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Evander Holyfield, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr. These are people who were born both with athletic gifts but also the drive, the competitive instincts, the something extra which enables and motivates hard work. What is interesting about hard work is that while you can feel like you are doing all you can do, it is possible and in fact likely that eventually you will meet a person who worked harder than you, maybe you find out you don't work the hardest? Then you ask what is it about that special person you met that gives them the capacity or drive to out work you consistently? Maybe you met the sort of person who has the attitude that they hate to lose and have to win at literally everything?
If there were a pill anyone could take to become a harder worker people who are labeled "lazy" would buy the pill but there isn't one. If everyone could simply read a book and learn to be a disciplined person then we'd have a very different world where no one would ever be sloppy.
Are we all willing to sacrifice everything to win? Dopamine levels have something to do with it. Some say testosterone has something to do with the competitor instinct. People who are mentally tough, who have the right brain type (combined with the right mind that set they learned) are deemed workers. Anyone can of course work hard but not equally as hard. It is also possible to have the hard working trait and direct it toward criminal activities and wind up in prison. So it's not hard work alone, but I would say if you have the trait to have this capacity for hard work then it is a profitable trait.
What about people who have the right values but who don't actually live up to their own values?
This is true. Always improving is critical but the question is why isn't everyone doing it all the time? A very very small percentage of the population seems to be living that way and even then we don't all do it equally. A lot of people settle for their current fate and status and don't have this drive to keep improving, to keep going, to risk it all on a dream.
I totally agree with this when it comes to outliers, but this is focusing on the extremes, right? On either end there is a manic drive, or lack thereof, that separates dysfunction from world-class performers.
Then you have the vast majority of people who are somewhere in between...
These people see significant improvements from modest exercise, tailored diet, consistent sleep -- better energy, self-esteem, body composition, general health indicators. They don't need to qualify for the Crossfit Games to see results. They don't need anything near the focus or drive of Michael Jordan.
The same goes for education or business. They don't need to have the single-mindedness of Steve Jobs to be successful. In fact, they don't need anything near that.
Most people I've met, even adults I've taught to read or do basic math, have something in their life that they take more seriously than most people -- something that they work at, or study, or take pride in. It's their personal foundation. It might be modest compared to other people, but it's solid nonetheless. That's where they build from.
Along these lines, one person may have zero drive for physical fitness but overcompensates for it with their passion for small engine repair.
I've often had the experience of thinking someone is lazy in the workplace, only to discover they are gifted with building community outside of work.
I just haven't met very many people who are completely dysfunctional, short of mental illness. In fact, the genetics theory tends toward an elitism makes me uncomfortable. It might explain outliers of motivation, but that's about it, in my opinion.
That said, I've met a lot of people who are conditioned to believe they are a victim of circumstances -- wealthy, poor, and in-between. Nothing to do with genes. Lots to do with other kinds of privilege.