Two myths at play: 1. Overnight is never overnight. More probably you just never heard of it before. 2. If you just keep going you will eventually make it. But probably not. ( http://swombat.com/2012/3/10/successful-people ) Believe what you want and act accordingly.
It's not "just keep going and you will eventually make it". It's a question of continuing to learn and make progress towards your goal over a long period of time (in this case, how to build a successful startup). Malcolm Gladwell calls it "deliberate practice". For whatever reason most people can't do it, and that's okay, startups are not for everyone. But if you want to be a Pinterest type success, then that's what…
Malcolm Gladwell, who has said in an interview that he writes to try out ideas
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122671211614230261.html
"Q: Do you worry that you extrapolate too much from too little? "A: No. It's better to err on the side of over-extrapolation. These books are playful in the sense that they regard ideas as things to experiment with. I'm happy if somebody reads my books and reaches a conclusion that is different from mine, as long as the ideas in the book cause them to think. You have to be willing to put pressure on theories, to push the envelope. That's the fun part, the exciting part. If you are writing an intellectual adventure story, why play it safe? I'm not out to convert people. I want to inspire and provoke them."
is good, while trying out ideas, at crediting his sources. He correctly sources the term "deliberate practice" to its coiner, psychologist K. Anders Ericsson, a world-leading expert on the subject of the acquisition of expertise.