When I was doing graduate work in gerontology around the turn of the century we spent a lot of time discussing the "stages" of adult development. Common wisdom at the time was that competitiveness among men started to fall off at about age 55. It certainly did in my case, and with it came an increased interest in relationships. That change felt a lot like going through a transition, similar to the way I transitioned from adolecence to adulthood, and not so much like I had changed because of increased insight or wisdom that could be passed on to someone in a different stage of life.