What’s the difference between an amateur and a professional?
Most people immediately think of fame—professional athletes, high-profile artists, or experts at the top of their fields. The literal definition tells us that a professional is someone whose primary occupation is a particular activity, while an amateur engages in it more as a pastime.
But I believe the real difference is about mindset.
If you treat something as a hobby, something casual—without intention or deliberate thought—you will always remain an amateur. No matter how much time you spend on it, without focused commitment, progress will stall.
Physical fitness is a clear example. You can work out every day for 20 minutes or even an hour, but if you ignore what you eat and drink, you won’t see the results you’re after. You’ll wonder why you aren’t losing the extra weight, running faster, or lifting more. And it’s frustrating.
Most of us have something in our lives we’ve half-committed to. Something we wanted to be great at—but we got lazy, distracted, or just never fully locked in. And while discipline plays a role, attention is a bigger factor than we often admit.
I wrote about this recently in the Map Check newsletter—how our attention is constantly pulled in a hundred directions. The truth is, it’s hard to focus your “flashlight” when everything around you is designed to scatter your light.
From Passion to Practice
For me, one of those passions has always been writing.
For most of my life, I was an amateur. I wrote notes to myself, to my wife and kids. I even cranked out a book in five months back in 2013. But I never committed to getting better—not really.
That started to change after I finished my master’s degree in 2019. I made a decision: I was going to write one article every month and submit it to a blog. That small commitment created momentum. It built a habit, and over time, confidence followed.
As more of my work made its way into the public eye and received positive feedback, I began to realize: I have a lot more I want to say.
Then in 2020, we launched Always in Pursuit (AIP). Between show notes for the podcast, the weekly newsletter, and blog posts, I found myself writing several times a week.
Now, a year later, I’ve written:
- 60+ blog posts
- 52 show notes
- 50 newsletters
- And another 60,000-word manuscript
Writing still isn’t my full-time job, but I’m no longer an amateur either. I’m in that in-between space—the grind zone—where the discipline of practice is slowly transforming into professional mastery.
The Real Difference
So what separates an amateur from a professional? Hard work and consistency.
Stephen King. Steven Pressfield. Michael Jordan. These names are now synonymous with mastery—but they didn’t start at the top. They all spent years putting in work—while holding day jobs, juggling responsibilities, grinding in obscurity.
Then one day, it clicked. Their work broke through. But it wasn’t magic—it was the accumulation of consistent effort.
Your Turn
So, what’s your passion?
Are you willing to put in the work to turn it into something more?
Are you willing to put in the work to turn it into something more?
The only thing standing between you and that next level is a redirection of your time and energy.
Start small:
Commit to 5–10 minutes a day.
Then don’t stop.
The more you do it, the better you get. The better you get, the more time you’ll want to give it.
Just ask Mrs. AIP—she’s lost count of how many times she’s had to pull me away from the computer, asking if I planned to spend the entire day writing. It happens. Because when you love something, time fades away.
Put in the work.
Commit to one month.
Then watch what happens.
Hope this adds value to your life.
~ Mike