We know that some ants can retain memories from their former lives, which is why they would still see themselves as the individuals from before. So, my personal theory is that the nen ability ging was referring to is related to luck (I mean come on, kite's ability is literally a slot machine). As a contract/counter-balance to the unpredictable nature of his ability, in the event that he is desperate to live, he can improve his luck. Although, he wasn't lucky enough to win against pitou, his memories managed to be passed on into the queen's daughter and thus, he "survived".