The analogy of inheriting a position in a game played by somebody else is great. Winning or loosing depends on how you finish it. What I can't agree is using chess itself: in chess there's no luck, if you play better than your opponent you will certainly win. In life, even after you inheriting the position, luck is a relevant factor, and the better player can loose.

Paraphrasing Nassin Taleb, a good player is somebody that optimises the chances of black swans to happen in life. But even this might no grant you a win.