Hobby, Pro here it goes again
For me the title matters not, the quality of work does. We all started at the beginning, at least I did and am not sure of any turner that was up and running by being born with a gouge in their posterior.
So we all made the same mistakes and probably all produced pieces that we would rather not remember but that is the fun of it.
As Terry has said one aspect of earning is from demos, tools, teaching etc etc and indeed it is those starting out in turning or the ones that want to partake in a particular discipline that opt for tuition.
Certainly my tuition has grown over the years and is a good income, the demo's while they were very busy I have found it is more profitable for me to stay in the workshop so have cut back drastically but still enjoy several at shows and locally.
Personally I have not found hobby turners to be in any form of competition with me, there are many that sell in the galleries that I do but all the work is of a high standard or it would not be there.
All the work is different as the gallery owners take a wide variety of styles so not to clash, better for them and better for the makers.
Competition if there is any is a good thing as it drives up standards and if full time turners find it difficult to compete then best pull your socks up
come up with some new work or make it much more efficiently than other people.
Personally I think we all work well together, and dare I say it a lot of Pro's are semi retired-retired anyway so are they really pro, ?? But the badge does look nice