[ibeckermayer]

When I read a story like this, I don’t think mere luck/timing.

You taught yourself programming in your 40s. That’s hard work and discipline to gain a skill. There’s plenty of other stuff you could have chosen to do with your time, but you chose to do this instead.

The very fact that you were going to meetups is a sign of diligence and eagerness, which are both conscious traits that can be consciously nurtured.

Yes, there’s an element of chance involved in that person recognizing your shirt and him having a job to offer you and that company getting acquired. But you put yourself in the position to take advantage of that serendipity through working hard at your skills and spending your time wisely at meetups.

There are things we can control and things we can’t, and both play a significant role in our outcomes.