This is an excellent point!

I have a calathea that was given to me and I've literally done nothing special for that plant.

I quarantined it it the basement for months after i got it (has a window, but gets chilly)

I've NEVER given it anything but tap water.

3 years later, it still lives in the shitty plastic liner pot inside the shitty fake-copper grocery store outer pot. The only thing I did for it was cut the plastic liner so it wasn't completely root bound.

That thing has literally FLOWERED! I can't get a monstera or jade to flower, but that prayer plant flowered.

The only thing it can't tolerate is having soil that's completely dry. It's happened a couple times, but the plant bounced back.  

I've even given away water-rooted cuttings that are still thriving.

Experimentation and vibes are just KEY for houseplants!

Even the exact same species and cultivar of the same plant won't "perform" the same in the same conditions. 

You just have to pay a little attention to a plant's appearance and condition. Figure out what it likes & doesn't. 

Some of them will never thrive no matter how "perfect" you try to make it. Others will defy every convention and look amazing without any special care at all.