No matter what the field, the professional is the best port of call, especially in an emergency. Even before something happens, it is always better to call in the services and expertise of a professional than to reply on an amateur and then mess something up. Here is a closer look at why everyone goes to a professional first:

Nobody earns the title of ‘professional’ until they are well versed in their respective fields. For instance, an inspector or building manager cannot be called a professional until he/she can compile a safe work method statement concreting on which the proper plan can be built and implemented; it’s not enough to just know what is needed, they have to be able to express and communicate it too. Many professionals go to school for years to gain their expert knowledge and then implement that knowledge practically in their field for a further number of years before they are given or can give themselves the title of professional. Think of doctors who go to school for over 5 years just to do theory; practice takes a further 2-3 years.

Sometimes, the aforementioned knowledge is not from any school but from the school of life. Many professionals become so by virtue of having being in the field for many, many years. Think of the old and grizzled builder who had laid more bricks and patched up more roofs than he/she could count; they could probably draw up a electrical safe work method statement at the drop of a (hard) hat – that’s how much time they have put into their job and how much it has become second nature to them. Over the years professionals build up second sight and hone their instincts to such a level that they sometimes come to conclusions in the course of their job that may seem incomprehensible to novices in the same field. Take an old teacher, who will know immediately when a child is troubled, versus a younger and more inexperienced teacher who will require more outward signs before coming to the same conclusion.

Part of being ‘professional’ is adhering to a code of ethics that exist within that profession. So lawyers generally do not represent any parties or appear against any parties with whom they have more than a passing relationship with. Engineers are expected to never deliberately use low quality building equipment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Construction_site_safety and materials even with the (best) intentions of saving money because that may backfire someday. A doctor is to hold doctor-patient communication with the highest confidentiality and in many countries, it is recognized by the court as well. Thus, their experience, their knowledge and their code of conduct usually makes us pick them over the myriad of options we usually have.