Being there at the right place at the right time definitely makes a difference. But - somehow I feel that there is always an element of luck involved in deciding that. You don't want to end up waiting and waiting and realize, oops you were too late!
Given the nature of startups and short runways, it's a gamble for a startup to depend on having the "timing right". There are much safer and proven methods for building companies, but its fun to think about.
The reason we don't see that sort of thing happen may be that it just looks like they're slow to gain traction from the outside. Except they're slow because of timing, not execution or other internal reasons. Of course, they themselves probably don't know they're "waiting".
Here's another quote, not from the book:
"Timing, perseverance, and ten years of trying will eventually make you look like an overnight success." - Biz Stone, Co-founder, Twitter
What can stop you (apart from giving up) is if you can't (or won't) learn some key thing, or can't (or won't) do some key thing. Which is why having mentors/colleagues is very helpful (for learning); and having co-founders and being able to employ/outsource/team-work is very helpful (for doing).
That way when the market's ready, you're in a great position since you've already spent time creating and refining your product, as opposed to someone who waited to start only when they saw the correct market conditions.