The Art of Staying Young: My 10 tips

Being perceived as being younger both emotionally and intellectually is often more important than looking younger. In this recession you need to learn the fine art of being perceived as younger as well as looking younger. So if you’re over 40, here are 10 tips:

1: Buy teeth whitening strips. Shallow for sure, but having coffee-stained teeth won’t do you any favors in interviews.

2: Get on Facebook today. If you don't know how to join, let your kids show you. Use Google and know what Wikipedia is. Learn how to text and TiVo.

3: Check out your local Apple store and ask to learn the difference between an iPod Classic, iPod Touch, and iPod Nano.

4: If for some reason you still remember your SAT scores, keep them to yourself. No one cares and scoring has changed, so you'll just wind up aging yourself.

5: Pick up a copy of Entertainment Weekly before an interview. Nothing gets you more up to date on the youthful world of pop culture.

6: Rarely refer to your children, never your grandchildren, and never ever your great-grandchildren.

7: Never talk about the 80s or 90s, and never use words from "your day." Nothing at work is groovy, ever.

8: Practice "sounding young" on the phone. Take a small survey of how old you sound on the phone, and then practice sounding younger with a friend. In the same vein, make sure your outgoing voicemail message isn't too long or boring. Make it short and sweet.

9: No man over 40 should be wearing an Abercrombie & Fitch t-shirt, and no woman over 40 should be sporting a skimpy halter top. Get your nails done.

10: Always wear deodorant, skip the cologne and ask an outsider for an opinion on your hairstyle. A bad coloring job spells disaster for both men and women.

Feel any younger, or just berated? Trust me, I just took 10 years off the way you come across. It's all about perception—and perception is reality.