Millions Believe Their Future Is Dictated By 'Fate' Or 'Destiny'

Millions of people believe that their future is dictated by 'fate' or 'destiny'.

A survey of 2,000 adults uncovered our attitudes towards the idea of fate, and how much we believe in a preordained path in our lives.

73% of those surveyed said they believe in fate as a force acting on events in their future.

And 22% have made a big life decision based on the reading they received from a coin toss, a message in a fortune cookie or even a reading from a fortune teller.

It also emerged three in five have used the term 'everything happens for a reason' in the past. For many of us it's a comfort to think that somewhere out in the universe there is a force which has some control over the decisions we make in our lives.

Being responsible for every choice, good or bad, over a lifetime can feel exhausting, so it's understandable that from time to time we'll want to favour 'the hand of fate' over a more rational explanation.

But can we say definitively that destiny isn't somehow an influence over our lives?

'While it seems like an intangible concept, many of the people surveyed in the research believe that an event in their lives laid out of their control, and was written in their fate.

Rather than waiting to see what the future holds in store for them, one third of inquisitive Brits have visited a fortune teller for a reading.

Of these, 62% received what they believe to be an accurate reading, which predicted something in their future which later came true.

Despite this, only 22% believe fortune tellers or psychics are capable of visions of the future.

When it comes to leaving things in the hands of fate, 35% are happy to let destiny guide them in their romantic lives and one in six believe fate has a key part to play in the path they choose for their career.

As for the areas of our lives we want to try and keep complete control over, our finances, friendships and our family are all things we'd rather not leave up to chance.

Only one in ten Brits think they are unable to have any influence over their fate, while 73% think their destiny lies in their hands.

Of those who have taken fate into their own hands, 83% believe it was the right decision to make, with the outcome of following their destiny resulting in a positive outcome.

While some of us seem convinced by fate, it seems there's still a good chunk of us that don't see our destiny as something which is set in stone.

While the belief seems to be that some things in life are just meant to happen, that doesn't mean that we can't influence the path our future takes.