Quote from bali_survivor:
Success is dressed in overals and hard work (Thomas Edison)
Dedication, dedication and nothing more.
Read the biography of Jesse Livermore, Vic Sperandeo. The price that you'll pay for success will be extreemly high But it can be done and has nothing, absolutely nothing to do with luck.
Now, get to study books (ergghh..... read: other peoples failures and then subsequent attempts to "prove" their - often basically flawed - theories) and start filtering out the old wive tales and find those nuggets. It has all been said before.
Maria
Other than Livermore's ending which was well publicized, I don't think a lot of people know that Trader Vic blew up in the 90s... apparently by taking on too much risk than he could afford. Overall, I think 5pillars is right on, when you read the success stories, they have a high correlation with persistence in the face of adversity. I'd add that persistence should be accompanied by a willingness to learn from one's mistakes and redirect oneself along the way.