Humph. Guy needed a place to hang all those bad traits so he picked on amateurs. Tell it to the Olympics.
The difference between an amateur and a professional isnât always compensation for the activity. Are olympic athletes truly amateurs? If their âjobâ is to spend all day, every day training, they are professionals. This notwithstanding, I thought it nails it pretty well. As a pretty good for a recreational competitor in an olympic sport in which no one at any level is paid (whitewater slalom) Most of these apply to the difference between myself, and the world class competitors.
I disagree with the authorâs assertion that only amateurs seek to improve where they are weak, rather than finding someone else who is strong in that particular area. A professional should indeed surround themselves with people who are strong where they are weak; but they should do so while seeking to improve and strengthen their own areas of weakness.
What does it mean to be a professional? (pdf)
The original meaning of professional derived from the Middle English profes, an adjective meaning
having professed oneâs vows, which itself derived from Late Latin professus, past participle of profitÄri which meant to profess, confess. The idea was that professionals were those who âprofessedâ their skill to others, and âvowedâ to perform their profession to the highest standard.
In its original meaning, being a professional meant putting âdoing good workâ and the âqualityâ of the
work ahead of economic gain and the economic efficiency of workâit was not about the money, it was about the quality and integrity of work. This doesnât mean that professionals canât be paid for the work they do, it is just that being paid for doing this work is not a defining characteristic of being a professional.
I think he nailed it with the observation about âsecond order thinkingâ, or as Iâve heard it described elsewhere, âexecutive level brain functionâ. I understand it as being inclusive of the ability to think ahead and see around corners, then planning for it. When managing organizations and objectives, little progress can be made without anticipating, prioritizing and delegating. Do all three consistently, and success is almost a given.
This I agree with.
Amateurs blame others. Professionals accept responsibility.
The difference between amateur and professional is a question of semantics not action. The author of the article makes many suppositions and inferences which are not supported by anything other than the authorâs personal opinion. A professional job can be accomplished by the paid and unpaid. Excellence in a task has more to do with the end results of the task than anything else. I have visited museums which contain works of art that were done by those who were considered at the time âamateursâ. They had a goal and drove themselves to it. Sought the opinion of others and withered much criticism but they never gave up.
Professionalism? You know it when you see it whether a person is paid, unpaid or a member of a professional organization has nothing to do with it. I know a lot of morons that are members of ASME. 
Summed up by Raymond Chandler in âThe Big Sleep:â
âThe first time we met I told you I was a detective. Get it through your lovely head. I work at it, lady. I donât play at it.â
Cheers,
Earl
Iâm going to agree with dbeierl - heâs picked âamateurâ as a synonym for âincompetent nitwitâ. While the characteristics he cites are certainly valid, his choice of name/epithet is poor, IMHO. In my world, I know folks who would refer to themselves as âamateursâ who are far more skilled and conscientious (and successful) than many who describe themselves as âprofessionalsâ. It seems to me he chose it so as not to threaten those who are âcredentialedâ and who think of themselves as âprosâ but who really arenât.
A guy who says â hold my beer and watch thisâ is usually an amateur.
Any questions?
Well, Mr. Shore, if you are a true âamateurâ, you wouldnât be hiring yourself out, now would you? 
Word sometimes have different meaning depending on context. In the case of the tattoo cartoon and the post in the OP definition # 2 is the one that makes the most sense.
Definition of amateur
1 : one who engages in a pursuit, study, science, or sport as a pastime rather than as a profession She played soccer as an amateur before turning professional. a tournament that is open to both amateurs and professionals
2 : one lacking in experience and competence in an art or science The people running that company are a bunch of amateurs. Heâs a mere amateur when it comes to cookingâŚ
You have it Captân â while the article seems to lump all âamateursâ into #2, that isnât always the case - indeed, a case could be made along the lines of: âso you think youâre a professional? Maybe not if this is how you operateâŚâ
So rather than lumping all the dimwits and âhold my beerâ numbskulls as âamateursâ, why not call them something more descriptive, like âpeople acting unprofessionallyâ? Maybe even âare you acting like a pro or an amateur?â
Being a true pro is more than hiring yourself out - staying out of the maritime world, I know a number of people who will tell you they are âprofessional photographersâ because they have sold a few of their pictures - but I also know a fair number of âamateur photographersâ who run rings around those âprosâ in both technical and artistic skill. Iâm sure you guys know plenty of examples within the maritime sphere - like maybe the guy who ran his ferry into the anchored ship in the med, or the genius who was watching music videos while his ship ran aground.
Thereâs an army of nitwits in my neck of the woods who drive pick-ups and carry a bag of hammers who contradict your statement.
I DID say :âa TRUE amateurâ⌠
The linked post uses the concept of a âprofessional mindsetâ which I think is useful term. YMMV of course.
Professionals understand their circles of competence.
This is an easy trap to fll into, I think this is in part what got both Capt. Robin Walbridge in the sinking of the Bounty in Sandy and Capt Davidson in Joaquin. Both were overconfident and both made unwarranted assumptions about the nature of the weather system that they encountered.
An amateur needs someone to hold his beer for him.
A âProfessionalâ can â âgitâ âer doneâ â whilst holding his beer.