When we mention idols, we think of the Bill Gates, the Stephen Hawkings, the Michael Phelps, the Warren Buffets, and the Bill Nyes of the world. They are at the pinnacle of their fields, and it is through the aspiration to reach their levels of success that we envision ourselves surpassing our own barriers. Since they had revolutionized the world, we would want to one day surpass our own potential and reach beyond the average. To achieve this, we use these figures as motivation; however, we sometimes tend to seek individuals that have innate superhuman capabilities which makes it far-fetched to obtain their standing. Therefore, I personally draw my motivation from the idols that are closest to me and striving for their status is more feasible. I start with my parents. Parents are the first idols for most of us from whom we learn from and emulate at the very beginning. My parents were diplomats, and I was raised traveling the world with them. Through my experiences living in the six continents of the world, I grew up learning about the field of commerce, international finance, and diplomacy as they came together in trade relations between countries. I interned for my father during my free time, during breaks and after school hours, giving myself the early exposure to global money and banking structures that operate to connect the worldwide monetary system.

Like everyone else, I did not choose the family culture, the parents, or the upbringing that I was born into. So how do I make sense of my fate, and where I would go from what I was given? This was when I had dwelled into the realm of thought: philosophy. Even though Finance & Business paired with Philosophy is an unorthodox mixture, they come together to form who I am.

My sister married a philosopher, and it was my brother-in-law who first introduced me to philosophy. From him, I learned that philosophia, the love of wisdom, was innate within all of us. I consider myself a philosopher just as I would consider anyone else one. This is because we all seek wisdom; we are all students of this world and we seek to answer the fundamental questions of life. Unlike the business sector that perceives people as human resources and one’s value is determined by the amount of output he or she can generate, philosophy sees the soul as invaluable. This is why there is a heavy emphasis in self-realization and understanding, and the concepts that come from this conscience permeates through to every field. Whether an engineer, biologist, computer scientist, or entrepreneur, philosophy can and to some extent will couple with one’s day to day cognition.

Business and Finance are going to be my professions, and philosophy is going to be myself. This is how I distinguish myself through reason and deviate from all other accountants out there. This is what makes me different from the financial analyst next to me. I revel in understanding myself as a unique individual, and I advocate this discovery to anyone seeking to add onto the basis of their accumulated education. Plato once said “he who claims to know everything knows nothing,” and that is why one must keep an open mind as we all embark on the journey of self-creation in life.