AllMusic gave the album four of a possible five stars, with reviewer Stephen Erlewine saying, "This is who he is: a man slightly out of time and a musician who's gotten better at his craft over the years, winding up with the best record he's ever made."

Writer William Clark of Music Enthusiast Magazine wrote, "Although us fans have had to wait nearly twenty years to hear some new material from the renowned musician, when those first few racing guitar licks to "Welcome to My Mind" come cranking out of your speakers, you instantly know this album was more than worth the wait."

Metal Forces calls the album "an impressive piece of work that is multi-layered and jam-packed full of emotion with not a duff tune to be found," while Hard Rock Hideout described the album in saying "fantastic songwriting and outstanding playing fill The Way Life Goes, and Tom Keifer's voice has never sounded better!"

The Way Life Goes sold 5,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at No.78 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Featured on the CD are 3 new bonus tracks studio-recorded by multi-time Grammy Award winning record producer, audio engineer, and mixer Vance Powell, including a cover version of the Beatles' "With A Little Help From My Friends" and 2 different recordings of Cinderella's "Nobody’s Fool" in duet with Lzzy Hale of Halestorm.