If there is one book you should read this year

We all wish we could stay young forever. But ageing has a way of creeping up on us.

When did life get so serious? Why is it, as we grow older, we don't laugh as much? Why do we stop seeing the opportunities and the excitement and instead start feeling drained, cynical and out-of-touch? And just when did we turn into our parents?

Tim Drake and I spent over two years researching these very issues - and we came to a surprisingly simple insight - ageing really is all in the mind. In our ground-breaking book, 'You Can Be As Young As You Think', we show how you can test your brain's age and then train your brain to think younger, feel younger and be sharper.

You see, through our research, we uncovered the secrets of rejuvenation. These are the 6 Wisdoms of Youth. Each one is a powerful antedote to getting old - yet each one is surprisingly easy to apply through a series of practical tasks. Anyone, whatever their age, can learn these Wisdoms and truly rejuvenate their thinking - and their lives.

Here are some of the benefits you could reap from reading 'You Can Be As Young As You Think' :

- learn how to think with a 'Young Brain' and face life head-on with positivity and enthusiasm

- avoid becoming grumpy & irrelevant

- look younger, feel younger, act younger

- regain or retain everything you loved about being young

- be surrounded by people who make life worth living

- live a more fulfilling, successful and happier life

- aim towards eternal youth by leaving a legacy

In short, our life changing book helps you rediscover your youthful self and live the life you are only dreaming about. What other book promises you that?

And, of course, if you are a life coach, this book is sure to give you new insights into your work with clients.

'You Can Be As Young As You Think' was published by Pearson in May 2009. Place a order through http://www.amazon.co.uk/

Getting old happens young

I imagine that if I interviewed a dozen people in their 50s, most would say that they became aware of ageing when they turned 30. It's about at this age when last night's exercise routine leaves stiff limbs in the morning. It can also be the age when the grey hairs start to show. And, of course, it's that time when new parents start to recognise that their reactions mirror those of their parents.

It's that "OMG! I'm turning into my mum/dad!" moment.

However, social statistics show how much hidden ageing there is, well before our 30s! It may come as a shock but dreams and imagination, for example, can start drying up from 25 onwards.

What is even more shocking is that teenagers are also failing to find a vision for their lives. A University of Minnesota study of 20,000 kids found that 15% think they are going to die early. Far from engaging in risky behaviour because of invincibility, the survey suggests that many teenagers adopt unsafe practices because they decide that there's not a lot at stake. The future is already a no go zone.

For all of us, avoiding bad behaviour and unhealthy practices is partly about having belief in a better future. Avoid the negativity of Old Brain thinking. Rejuvenate using the 6 Wisdoms of Youth.

How much younger would you like to be?

Wouldn't it be great if you could just wave a magic wand and strip years off your life? Like layers on an onion, what would you like to peel off? 5 Years? 10 Years? Or may be more.

I've just dug out some social research statistics on this subject. They are a little old - they date from 2002 - but they give an early guide to how people see rejuvenation.

The first thing to notice is that about a third of people, do not want to change their age at all. These people are happy with where they are in their lives and do not yearn for a younger self. And 5% would like to be somewhat older than they are currently - but virtually all of these are found in the 15-24 year old age band of respondents.

The rest of us - some 60% - want to be younger! But how much younger is the younger you? 5 years younger will do 9% of us. Almost a quarter 24% want to be 10 years younger. But 27% want to roll back a full 20 years!!

Looking at the detail, it is unsurprising, perhaps, to see that the older you are, the more you yearn for a bigger rejuvenation - most people wishing for 20 years more youth were 45+.

Interestingly professional and self-employed people are the occupations wishing for the biggest swish of the rejuvenation wand. Why would this be? My hypothesis is that this is a reflection of how much they have sacrificed for their careers and how poorly they have lived their leisure lives. Are you one of these people? A lost youth spent studying and lost life spent climbing the career ladder may bring great frustration concerning ageing.

The other social groups yearning for youthfulness are the divorced, the separated and the widowed. So here, rolling back the clock is probably about regrets and the desire to have the time to make a fresh start.

So there you have it. The majority of people want to rejuventate - but their motivations for doing so are mixed - getting older is the most powerful reason to wish to be younger. But regrets about a wasted life and the desire to start again are also powerful reasons to rejuvenate.

Blowing open the assumptions about ageing

Are you one of those people who believe that ageing brings new wisdom and a better perspective on life? What if you have it upside down? Could it be that life was simpler when you were younger because you were better at living it?

Lots of social research points to the fact that the young have an approach to life which is more positive and leads to more fulfillment. For example, the young are simply more sociable. As people get older, they withdraw and fall back on a smaller and smaller circle of friends. And going out in crowds becomes terrifying - rather than exciting.

As for the wisdom of age, perhaps FP Jones was on to something when he said:

"Experience is that marvellous thing that enables you to recognise a mistake when you make it again".

So perhaps it's time to start challenging some of the common assumptions about ageing. Here are three truisms about the ageing process which go against the average view:

1. Ageing is more about how you think than how you look (so forget about botox and start looking at mindset change)

2. Wisdom is not only something you learn. You were born with a natural wisdom - the Wisdom of Youth (so work hard to regain what you've lost with the passage of time and don't think life is going to get easier, just because you are older)

3. People drift into 'old' thinking (grumpy and negative) as early as their early 20s (avoid become old before your time by rejuvenating your thoughts and acquiring a 'Young Brain').

It's been said that 'ageing' is the obsession of our times. If that's so, better start with the right assumption base.

Medicine makes you old!

I'm one of those people who avoid taking medicine if at all possible. My wife, meanwhile, is a pharmacist and encourages me to take pills and potions on all possible occasions. So you can imagine that this subject is a source of stress at home!

What about others? Take the French for example. A typical patient will feel positively cheated if he/she leaves a doctors surgery without 5 different prescription medicines. No wonder the French store medicines in cabinets in the kitchen rather than first aid boxes in the bathroom!
Now, I've always thought that people's views about medicine were limited to perceptions of efficacity and safety. But it turns out I was wrong. People link taking medicine with their age!

Advertising agency DDB recently surveyed consumers across 11 countries. They found, for example, that 77% of the Chinese feel that taking a medicine everyday makes you feel old. 70% of inhabitants of Singapore feel the same way. What they seem to be saying is that, if you have to take medicine, you must be near to death's door.

Other cultures take a different view. In the US, for example, only 39% link medicine to feeling old. On the contrary, 61% feel that taking a medicine everyday makes you feel healthy.

It would take an enormous effort to get beyond these statistics and read real meaning into them. Are the differences due to the respective health systems? The availability of different drugs and natural remedies? The breadth of preventative medicines? The cost structure?

Nevertheless, one thing is sure. Taking medicine is not neutral. Beyond the physiological effects, pill popping can have psychological impacts too. For some, taking drugs is a sign of age and decay. If you have one of these profiles, be careful about what you are taking and why. You may be inadvertently accelerating your descent into Old Brain thinking.

Hopes and Fears. What do people really think about ageing?

Ever since we wrote our book about fighting the ageing process, we've had lots of people come up expressing their hopes and fears about getting old. It's certainly a topic which arouses high emotions!

Common debates are: is it better to grow old gracefully? Should we really regret our youth? Is it possible that we don't get wiser as we get older? Can we really remain youthful into our 60s and 70s?

The Guardian newspaper carried a piece about ageing this week. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/oct/12/charlie-brooker?commentpage=5

As is often the case, the interest came from the comments, rather than the article itself. Here are a few of the opinions of readers about ageing:

Having just suffered another birthday I realise that the older I get the more I try and act as some sort of self-appointed lighthouse-keeper, trying to dissuade those lucky to be younger than me to steer clear from the rocks of addled age I imagine I ran aground upon years ago.

I hate looking back on all the chances I've wasted in my life. Why couldn't I see that I wasn't fat, that I wasn't ugly, that I really could have done anything I wanted to do if I'd only worked a bit harder and been prouder of myself?

Dunno what all the fuss is about. I'm 71 and think that aging is great fun. Usually up before 3am whence I take my dog for a 4 mile walk. Dance 4/5 times a week, play bridge 3 times a week, hike/backup/ camp every weekend, writing 2 books (already written 50). July backpacked 6 days in Sierra Nevada, Aug camped out on ferry Alaska. This weekend backpacking Catalina Island 3 days. end of month NZ for 5 weeks.

I used to shave my ears and cut my nose hair, but recently I've let it all grow into a comb over to cover my balding head.

38? 48? 58? If you feel OK, why worry? If you're obsessing about your age, you obviously aren't having enough fun.

I would say the point at which you stop being interested in anything new that is happening and constantly harp on about the good old years is the point at which you become old. For some this happens when they are young 21,22,23,24 others are able to keep a youthful vitality. My point of view is to do everything you can until the point that you physically can't. Physically many people are able to do a lot into their 60s and 70s.

Reading through the hundreds of comments, it was easy to divide the readers into two camps. Those with a positive outlook on ageing who were ready to face the battle by staying youthful and those ready to give up and get depressed about the prospect.

If you are one of those in the positive camp, read our book ('You Can Be As Young As You Think') for helpful hints on how to stay fresh, sharp and in touch.