Part of the problem when you're quite a bit older than your hired help, occasionally you have to put your foot down when employees screw up. Fortunately the Subway I ran with my friend Jason, I took care of the inventory, sales reports, that stuff. Jason did the schedules, payroll, and the occasional firing. So he got to be the "bad guy", but he had no problem handling discipline.
One job I had since then, there was another manager my age (also named Jason). This Jason was in charge of the wait staff. But Jason was 40, most of the staff under him were high school/college age. And Jason let them get away with murder. Sometimes very little got done, but Jason never put his foot down.
Why?
Because Jason was so insecure, he wanted everyone to be his friend. If he wrote somebody up, they might not like him any more! So he let them walk all over him. And I tried explaining this to Jason. The kids might like you, but they do not RESPECT you. Big difference.
If you're so worried about what everyone thinks of you, or gaining everyone's approval, it's gonna make your job tough.
You can't have authority and not have a backbone.