There are things other than luck that are out of the control of the startup.

Here is a quote: "In a great market -- a market with lots of real potential customers -- the market pulls product out of the startup."

I've recently seen interesting arguments that optimism creates luck by enabling you to recognize more opportunities.

E.g. http://www.damninteresting.com/you-make-your-own-luck/

Random =/= an even distribution of lucky and unlucky. Randomness clumps together and can be decidedly un-random looking at times. Some people do not get a fair shake, and despite their notable efforts, still find themselves on the short end of the stick.

In some cases, but even in those cases, only to a limited extent. Is winning the lottery is a function of hard work and preparedness?

Failure as well.

You can't fail if you don't try. Sounds stupid, but not every opportunity is worth it. Risk can and will bite. You don't get an INC cover story by ruining your personal life though.

More drastically, use the Omaha Beach landing, as depicted in Saving Private Ryan, as an example: All soldiers were equally equipped, motivated, trained. But then a grenade falls from the sky and hits your landing vessel. Completely outside of your control, but still you're fucked and die.

Happens to the best, to this day, SEAL, DEVGRU or not. Bad luck is bad luck.

Same in business. Do everything right and still fail. Luck is underrated.

There is Risk Management, I wonder if Luck Management is something that will arise in the future. Chance works both ways.