Jobs vs professions

So, a doctor riding a bicycle to work gets Internet attention. It's a cute story for sure, but it's only a small appetizer of what it means to be a professional. If you want the entree, read about Carlo Urbani. I'm sure you've never heard of him. However, you've probably heard of SARS, the horrifying respiratory virus with a 11% fatality rate. It was discovered by Dr. Urbani, who recognized that this was a novel and lethal virus. He alerted the WHO, and tried to take steps to limit the disease spread. He caught the virus himself, and arranged for a makeshift isolation room, where his wife could only talk to him through an intercom. He died from SARS, and donated his lung tissue to science for study. He almost certainly saved millions of people from contracting the virus, and thousands if not millions of deaths.

If you want to know the difference between a job and a profession, this is it. A job is 9 to 5. A profession is part of who you are, and has a responsibility that extends into our social lives, our personal lives, and sometimes, it even costs us our lives. That's not a job. I don't mean to knock janitors, but no janitor should ever die with a mop in hand.