EDIT: There were lots of people just like him that weren't crazy-successful. It's wonderful that he put himself into a place where he could succeed, but that's only necessary, not sufficient, to realize that success. He deserves credit for buying the ticket and taking the ride, but beyond that it's luck.
The problem I always have is that the right place isn't really apparent until years after the decision about where to be is made. At the time, there're many places that look appealing, and little reason to choose one over the other. And then it's only with hindsight that one of those becomes a big success and the rest become has-beens.
I was thinking about this today when responding to a Reddit post whining about how there're no good high-paying jobs left in this country:
http://www.reddit.com/r/economy/comments/eyu1o/the_unemploym...
Of course that's false. However, when I think about how I got my good high-paying job, the answer that comes to mind is "pure dumb luck". I happened to like computers when I was a teen in the 90s, and I happened to stick with it through the dot-com bust in the early 2000s, and so now that these CS jobs are paying six figures easily, I've got close to ten years experience in skills that are very hot. But I wasn't really thinking about professions or salary at the time; I was thinking "Hey, this seems sorta interesting, I wonder what else I can find out..."
Even companies that don't make it often lead their founders to other great opportunities (e.g. at other yc companies). I also believe there's something surprisingly powerful about witnessing success first hand.
I'd be curious to hear examples of people who spent a day wearing a sandwich board with their resume in the financial district, and did all the other things this guy did, and did not end up achieving some level of success.
He reminds me of Chris Gardner, who inspired the movie Pursuit of Happyness.
Don't use the place as an excuse.