A sidekick has a different status than the hero because they primarily fill auxiliary or submissive tasks in pursuit of the venture. I’m familiar with this status as a technical writer.
I initially started with a grand expectation that I might one day write for a crew of genius software developers working on AI, or Space Exploration, or who-knows-what. If I want these things to happen, why did I not seek the “higher” status for myself?
I’ve never really had a problem with math or computer science, and all throughout high school I dreamed of being a programmer. I even applied to college as a prospective Computer Science major. But two weeks before courses began, I switched.
The reason was that I could not help but recall that I was not excelling quite as much as those around me were. I did not put in as much effort, I did not do as many math or cs training, and I failed to be exceptional. We had similar starting-abilities and a similar environment, but they had a more singular focus. In contrast, when they were doing their maths and programming exercises I gravitated more towards reading marathons.…
So my idea became this: if I try to be a computer scientist myself, I will likely be unable to constrain myself from my reading obsession, and I will fail to be exceptional. But if I make being a computer scientist my main auxiliary hobby and do my best with my natural gift of the written word, then I improve my chances of being in an exceptional venture rather than an ordinary one.
I say all this to say that the “sidekick” role can be a rational way to participate via:
I get to be the second stomach. The hero goes through the trouble of digesting the initial material, and I get the benefit of a less fibrous meal.
I can’t do what the hero can do with a similar exertion of effort. That exertion I can instead use to help the hero and get the goal accomplished.
I get to hear the news first. I’m excited and interested.
I get a portion of the glory from participating on the hero’s journey.
I’m being torn away from my computer before thinking out this comment as thoroughly as I would like to, so I’ll be thinking more about it and return later to see if there is anything I need to clarify or add.
A sidekick has a different status than the hero because they primarily fill auxiliary or submissive tasks in pursuit of the venture. I’m familiar with this status as a technical writer.
I initially started with a grand expectation that I might one day write for a crew of genius software developers working on AI, or Space Exploration, or who-knows-what. If I want these things to happen, why did I not seek the “higher” status for myself?
I’ve never really had a problem with math or computer science, and all throughout high school I dreamed of being a programmer. I even applied to college as a prospective Computer Science major. But two weeks before courses began, I switched.
The reason was that I could not help but recall that I was not excelling quite as much as those around me were. I did not put in as much effort, I did not do as many math or cs training, and I failed to be exceptional. We had similar starting-abilities and a similar environment, but they had a more singular focus. In contrast, when they were doing their maths and programming exercises I gravitated more towards reading marathons.…
So my idea became this: if I try to be a computer scientist myself, I will likely be unable to constrain myself from my reading obsession, and I will fail to be exceptional. But if I make being a computer scientist my main auxiliary hobby and do my best with my natural gift of the written word, then I improve my chances of being in an exceptional venture rather than an ordinary one.
I say all this to say that the “sidekick” role can be a rational way to participate via:
I get to be the second stomach. The hero goes through the trouble of digesting the initial material, and I get the benefit of a less fibrous meal.
I can’t do what the hero can do with a similar exertion of effort. That exertion I can instead use to help the hero and get the goal accomplished.
I get to hear the news first. I’m excited and interested.
I get a portion of the glory from participating on the hero’s journey.
I’m being torn away from my computer before thinking out this comment as thoroughly as I would like to, so I’ll be thinking more about it and return later to see if there is anything I need to clarify or add.