I have a deep, dark secret. Lurking beneath the pinstriped exterior of this ex-accountant lurks the soul of a secret rock ‘god’! When I was a teenager I had a guitar and spent many a lonely night plucking away, warbling along to my Leonard Cohen songbook… I even took lessons. I practised till my fingers were sore. I persevered. Despite my very best efforts, after several years I gave up, forced to agree with my family and friends that I was totally devoid of any latent talent in this area and as musical as a bag of spanners!

This was a bitter pill to swallow, but some 40 years later I have come to terms with it. I will never strut my stuff with a Fender… There are many things that come naturally and effortlessly to me, and some may even be things that others will look at a say to themselves “I wish I could do that!” but of course, human nature being what it is, one discounts these gifts, and takes them for granted.

Each of us is blessed with unique talents, but we can easily focus on those we don’t have rather than using and developing those we do have. Now, I have no doubt if I was Brad Pitt (and many people have noted the striking similarity) and I needed to learn to play the guitar for my latest blockbuster, then I could have been coached to point where I could fake it, but the truth is, love it though I do, I am not musical!

So, whilst I am not suggesting that we shouldn’t challenge ourselves to master new things, the truth is I think we are dealt the cards we need at birth, and the clue to our paths and happiness are there before our eyes. So if you are feeling a little lost and wondering what your path is, take a look at what is right in front, because the your destiny is probably ‘hiding’ in plain view!

“I seldom end up where I wanted to go, but almost always end up where I need to be.” Douglas Adams