Symptoms of the Fear of Old Age
The commonest symptoms of this fear are:
The tendency to slow down and develop an inferiority complex at the age of mental maturity, around the age of forty, falsely believing one’s self to be “slipping” because of age. (The truth is that man’s most useful years, mentally and spiritually, are those between forty and sixty).
The habit of speaking apologetically of one’s self as “being old” merely because one has reached the age of forty, or fifty, instead of reversing the rule and expressing gratitude for having reached the age of wisdom and understanding.
The habit of killing off initiative, imagination, and self-reliance by falsely believing one’s self too old to exercise these qualities. The habit of the man or woman of forty dressing with the aim of trying to appear much younger, and affecting mannerisms of youth; thereby inspiring ridicule by both friends and strangers.
* Source: Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill