I meet people from the world of finance and the City of London wherever I turn, so it is probably just as well that I am starting to look better in my clothes. Even the start of my day doesn't allow for any let-up in the personal presentation stakes – there is an impossibly elegant woman on my train most mornings who I reckon works at Deutsche Asset Management. Does anyone know a sophisticated blonde woman there, who manages to look impeccable before 7am? She must commute from a long way west of London, so goodness knows what time she gets up, yet she always is immaculate.

On a recent Thursday, feeling underdressed in comparison with this woman, I made my way to the West London Shooting School to take part in a competition. I was a long way from the City, in the company of my teacher from Essex, The Lovely Tracey (TLT), and didn't make much of an effort in the wardrobe or make-up department. Big mistake. The man sent to score TLT and me as we made our way from stand to stand was young, attractive, and – just as I thought I was safe from the City – a former fixed-income star at Credit Suisse First Boston. Now retired, and I doubt even 40, he spends his time with not-for-profit organisations and teaching clay pigeon shooting. As I said to TLT, if more teachers looked like him we would have plenty of women taking up the sport. TLT scored 80 out of 100 and I managed only half that. I blame the distraction. Perhaps if I had bothered with make-up.