I Am a Philosopher

By Michael Kelman Portney

I’ve always been a philosopher, but it took years to understand what that meant. Right after graduating with my business degree, I found myself in a peculiar spot. I had this degree that seemed to promise success, yet I had no business to go into, no clear path forward. I even considered going back to college for philosophy. There was something about it that called to me, something deeper than the practicalities of business. But I held off, thinking it might be a detour rather than a destination.

Looking back now, I realize philosophy wasn’t a detour at all—it was my path. All along, I had a way of seeing things that wanted to go beyond business strategies and revenue models. I was searching for answers that couldn’t be measured on a spreadsheet or solved with equations. Growing up, philosophy wasn’t particularly encouraged. My dad is a great physicist, a brilliant mind in his own right, and has always had an aversion to philosophy. In our house, science was the lens through which the world was understood—rigid, practical, measurable. Philosophy, on the other hand, was something elusive, abstract, something not to be taken too seriously.

But as much as I respect my dad’s perspective, philosophy has become my tool for clarity. Real philosophy, to me, isn’t about retreating from reality but digging into its roots. It’s about asking why things are the way they are and daring to challenge the answers we’re handed. To be a philosopher is to look at life not just with curiosity, but with determination to break down structures that deny autonomy, to find clarity where others accept the fog.

I am a philosopher because I question the foundation of what we’re told to believe. I am a philosopher because I refuse to settle for someone else’s truth. And finally, I am a philosopher because this is how I’m carving my own path forward, staking a claim on a life that’s fully mine.