Younger but wiser than you might think.

Our special report "40 Under 40" in this issue of the Business Journal is an enlightening read, I believe, for those of us over 40 and anybody younger.

As in the past four years we have had this report, our coverage consists partly of profiles of 40 local professionals under the age of 40 who we chose to highlight as this year's "honorees" in our coverage.

They were selected from nominations sent into us by readers and from our editorial staff's own experiences and research covering Valley-area business.

All of the nominations were great. All of the people nominated could have been selected as "honorees"--but we could only pick 40.

The winners, we feel, showed exceptional achievement early in their careers. They're also doing big things at their companies and within their industries as a whole.

They're on a fast track and they're extremely focused to stay on track.

I've enjoyed talking with many of our young professionals as we compiled this report. And, as I told them, the Business Journal shouldn't be focusing on younger businesspeople just once a year. You'll be seeing on a regular basis more stories in our paper about younger executives, enterprising entrepreneurs and topics that would interest young businesspeople in general.

In talking to the under-40 crowd, I tried to pick apart what makes them different from the older generation. But in doing so, I found that there are many similarities between successful people of all age groups: Hard work and a certain amount of talent lead the list.

In talking with members of this year's "40 Under 40" group, I saw these common traits.

* They're hard workers but they also know the value of personal time. They're under no illusion like many members of my baby boomer generation are, I believe, that working 15 hours a day will make you climb the ladder of success more quickly. Life's too short, the "40 Under 40" believe, to spend most of it in the office. They believe that when you're working those 15-hour days perhaps you should pay a little more attention to your time management and efficiency.

* They're realistic. They're not like those pathetic people auditioning for "American Idol" who are held up to tremendous ridicule by an equally pathetic overproduced piece of crap television show. Some of those auditioning for that show believe that no matter what anybody tells them, they're beautiful, talented and likable and will eventually be a star. Our group of "40 Under 40" professionals know that the sky is the limit for them but sometimes you must climb the ladder to the sky in stages. These people work within the system, challenge it to a certain extent, but never lose sight of the fact that the system is there and will always be there.

* They don't under-value age and experience. Sure some of them are cocky and arrogant to a certain extent but they're too smart and too realistic to think that they can grow without the help of a mentor or two. They're also too smart and too realistic to forget that these older folks might have a few ideas that they can steal and call their own after these guys retire!

I've learned a few things in recent weeks from the "40 Under 40" group. Thanks.

A special thanks also goes to Business Journal Staff Reporter Chris Coates who spearheaded this special report. He did all the work.

Business Journal Editor Jason Schaff can be reached at [phone] or at [e-mail].