I took this screenshot yesterday when I realised I had broken into the top 100 NextColony players! Today I'm at Rank 86 so I'm climbing slowly. Onwards and upwards!
I think it's mainly luck so far. Most players will be following the same strategy: mines -> explorers -> new planets. I found two extra planets which I'm scaling up the mines on quickly, hence the high production.
But with battles there will soon be more choices to make. Time to think strategy!