The stereotype of the mid-life crisis is misleading. The mid-life crisis is very real, but at least for me it’s a quiet subtle thing. You still have family, friends, a career and hobbies, but you are presented with a small whispered question: “Now What?“. Much of what has lead to this stage of life has been a series of shared cultural milestones, each leading into the next. Now comes the actual choose your own adventure part of the story. Nobody is there to say, “congratulations, you did it, here’s what’s next.” I suspect this is what makes being in your 40’s so strange and challenging. You are responsible for figuring out what type of person you are going to be, and there’s nobody to answer that question for you.