Style

Shave Off the Years

A day's worth of tips to look a decade younger

By: Lindsey Aspinall & Trevor Thieme
[ Updated: Aug 26, 2008 - 10:58:23 AM ]

"As much as we hate to admit it, appearances matter," says New York City-based image consultant Elena Castaneda. This isn't news to you. You know all too well how your CEO smiles approvingly at the Topher Graces rising through the ranks and how easy it is to peg the over-35 crowd in the halls. How do you polish your image so you can most effectively show off the stuff that matters—your intellect and experience? What can you do to turn back time in the days leading up to a major corporate showdown? Here are 15 ways to put on a more-youthful face.


1. Sleep with an extra pillow
When you sleep, gravity pools fluid around your lower eyelids, where the skin is soft and elastic, causing undereye puffiness. To avoid the bags, slip an extra pillow under your head. This will encourage gravity to drain the eye area. Chilled spoons also work. The contour of the spoons will fit perfectly over your eyes, and the metal will remain cold just long enough to be effective, about 10 minutes.


2. Put on an act
"People don't remember facts and figures, they remember impressions," says Karen Friedman, an award-winning news anchor and president of Karen Friedman Enterprises, which helps CEOs and celebrities become more-effective communicators. To leave an impression of strength, youth, and vitality, be more animated. It'll make you come across as commanding, credible, authoritative, and confident. Practice your delivery in front of a friend or a mirror, keeping these tips in mind:

Project your voice. A booming voice sounds more youthful than a whisper. Imagine you are talking directly to the person in the back of the room.

Speak slower. Quick talkers appear anxious. Pace your words at around 130 per minute.

Straighten up. "The way you carry yourself sets the tone for how people will respond," says celebrity voice coach Renee Grant-Williams. A hunched-over posture will make you look old before your time. In Voice Power, Using Your Voice to Captivate, Persuade, and Command Attention, Grant-Williams recommends "the position of power," a stance that radiates power and control:

[Stand and] balance on the balls of your feet.
Tuck under slightly for support.
Keep your shoulders down.
Arch up with the back of your neck.
Keep your chin low.
Look up from below.