>>720443473
>Harry's greatest achievement was reading Snape's notes, while Snape was making his own spells at his age.
Yes. Harry never was competent, academic or skillful. His main fortes were Expelliarmus and Patronus, both showing the virtues of modern times: disarming your opponent and protection against fear itself, oh yeah and i guess he could fly really well with a broom. They are just underlining the virtues Rowling wanted the main character underdog to have. Harry is a good guy, he's likable. It doesn't mean he is or was supposed to be some omnipotent gary sue. What helped Harry in the life were in then completely outside things: His mother dying for him making him invulnreable against Voldemort, and Voldemort only. After him surviving Voldemort, he became the legend, The Boy Who Lived. And that legend made people want to rally behind him and offer him the protection. That's why Ron was so keen to make friends with him. That's why his parents' friends were always looking out for him. That's why Dobby, Malfoy's house elf, wanted to protect him. Harry was charismatic and he got boost from becoming a legend when he was only a toddler for surviving Voldemort, suriving killing curse which has never happened before and making Voldemort disappear. But nothing he did was thanks to him or his actions, they were given to him.
The crucial parts in the story are those when Harry acted rashly and things ended up worse (him wanting to save Sirius and it turning out to be trap set by Voldemort) and when Harry managed to keep his calm and instead of acting, waiting (Harry chose not to race Voldemort for the Elder wand and instead stayed put and made efforts to continue destroying the Horcrux so that Voldemort could be beaten eventually).
Harry Potter books are very pedantic and pedagoic of soft virtues. They discourage acting on the heat of moment and instead they encourage to keep your calm and wait things out and focus on things that matter.