Writer, Agilist, Elder Geek
Sometimes people talk about their career. Sometimes they talk about their job. In too many cases people mix the two up. In other cases they talk about careers without talking jobs and jobs without talking careers. In all cases people are missing the big picture about jobs and careers.
Jobs are not careers. Careers are not jobs. Understanding how they're different – and how they're related – is key to your success.
If you're a geek, a fanboy, fangirl, otaku, sports nut, what have you be proud that you know how to relax.
Seriously. You know how to relax. You know what you like, as I've said further, and that's not just important in your career, but in your life. You have a life – a life where you know what you enjoy doing to blow off steam.
Think for a moment how fortunate you are to know that three issues of manga will help you chill out after a month of software releases. Be glad that you know a marathon World of Warcraft session will restore your sanity after you met your publishing deadline. Appreciate the fact that ESPN is therapeutic after a hard day at the hospital.
Thats one of your advantages as a progeek – when you've got too much pro going on (or too much else going on), you've still got the geek to help you get back in touch with yourself and in general just have fun. Knowing how to have fun means you can relax and refresh. Being relaxed and refreshed means you can recover from stress – or face stress that's still out there.
So embrace your geekines, progeek. Your geekiness gives you a way to come down from a bad day that some people don't have. Imagine what it would be like not to have your DVD collection, or your love of retrogaming, or your stack of well-worn Warhammer 40K novels. Take a moment to feel some sympathy for those unable to relax as you do (and perhaps vow to help them out).
You're a progeek. It's not just about your ability to work using fannish inclinations – you also have the ability to use your fandom to relax.
– Steven Savage
Why Superheroes?
They're in our movies. Every few years there's a rush of superhero films (and apparently a big rush as of this writing).
They're on television. We've been having superhero stories for quite a few years now. We've also had "superheroesque" shows like Buffy and Supernatural, which are superhero stories with other trappings.
They're in games, despite the fact that superhero games have a dismal history with a few shining gems.
They are, of course, in comics. Comics may expand their themes in North America, but it keeps coming back to superheroes.
So, why superheroes? Why are they everywhere, and even when they fade, why do they come back?