Sure you have to be lucky, but nothing trumps personal experience. Remember why you lost every fish or why you caught them. In my mind covering water quickly and watching the sounder counts for a whole lot. When you see bait or arches, do a big circle and go back through don't ignore them. If you pick a fish up near bait, do a big circle and go back through it the same direction you had success on. Replicate and remember the successful moves you make. A famous saying I was told on the river: "don't leave fish to find fish". Once you've put in enough time, covered enough water and found fish in certain areas you'll be able to formulate your own theories about why they sit in certain areas and you can hit them quickly and either find fish or move onto the next.
Something else I've learned is the importance of fishing structure or strategic areas, but when fish are migrating you have to dedicate some time to fishing the "highways". Your getting skunked hard fishing structure, but if you turn out into the deep there's travel lanes out there. Try the 500' line, split your rods 90 and 130 and boom traveling fish. You wont find this success if you don't put in the time trying new things. Keep one rod with your favorite lure or saltiest chovie at your favorite depth but try another somewhere you haven't before... way up high maybe? Boom fish at 50'.
Try new things, replicate success, have fun, get lucky.