Not a career politician?
From her biograpy, it appears she's never done anything else, except a short stint after college as a sports reporter, and to help out with the family fishing business. She's been a professional politician on and off for the last 16 years, except for a year at the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission which means she's got experience as a government bureaucrat, too.
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin#Early_life_and_education