Autobiography

was when I was 40, and certainly happier than
I was when I was ten. Life is what you make of
it.
I have been rich and I have been poor and I
have been very happy and very unhappy. But
being rich didn’t mean being happy, and being
poor didn’t mean being unhappy; there were
great moments of happiness when I was poor,
such as riding my motorbike with the wind in
my hair, and I have suffered great sadness
while being rich. The only time I never
experienced happiness was when I was in
poverty, which is different from being poor. I
have to say rich is better. That is a plain fact.
But one of the happiest men that I know is in
his forties has a wife and two children who he
adores, earns less than £30,000 a year and he
tells me he is the happiest person on the
planet. Happiness and wealth are not
necessarily the same thing.
So where am I today?
I am as excited about the future as at any time
in my life, and I am forever trying to convince
other people that age isn’t a barrier; it is only a
barrier if you declare yourself to be old. Age is
only a real obstacle if you want to run a fourminute
mile or play football for Real Madrid
when you are past your youth. But then
unrealistic ambitions at any age are
destructive. I have discovered as I’ve moved
through life that new challenges are
surprisingly enjoyable. I do different things
that are equally fulfilling. Ambitions and
desirers change with age, but they can be
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