Monday morning inspiration from a couple of famous octogenarians

By Alec Hogg

Lessons from two inspirational octogenarians this Monday morning.

First, 81-year-old Emerging Markets investment guru Mark Mobius. In January he left the £750bn Franklin Templeton group after 30 years. But instead of retirement, Mobius has applied for licences to launch mutual funds in London and Luxembourg. Better yet, the funds have a decidedly New Age link – targeting stocks with top ESG ratings (environmental, social and governance).

The other is Roger Bannister, who was seven years Mobius's senior. Bannister passed away peacefully in Oxford on Saturday night. Appropriately as it is the city where he shot to global fame in 1954 by running the world's first sub-four-minute mile. The Oxford university medical student's feat inspired a generation to challenge things previously believed to be physically impossible.

Ageless Mobius reminds us you're never too old to start again. And from Bannister, we gain a rational perspective on life: even though more people have climbed Mount Everest than broken the four minute mile, the first man to do so regarded his career as a neurologist and 14 grandchildren as a greater achievement than anything he did in athletics. Fame is fleeting. Family is forever.