You also need somebody good to pair with. It can be really infuriating to have to deal with someone who can't keep up but on the other hand if you work with someone you respect, it's great.

Yeah, pairing is a learned skill!

If you put two random programmers together and ask them to "pair program", you'll very likely end up with two annoyed people at the end of the day.

I was lucky in being mentored into it by some very seasoned pros, and I learned the tricks of the trade that way.

IME anyone is able to pair, given the right conditions and being paired with the right person.

However, it's like therapy: being forced to do it instead of doing it by yourself will result in a terrible experience.