Larry Eastland is a bit of a renaissance man to say the least. He plays multiple instruments at a professional level, is a combat-decorated US Marine Corps officer, BYU graduate, USC political science masters and doctorate graduate, has served four US Presidents in a number of national and international positions, has held numerous church callings, leads an international business advisory group, and is a loving husband, father, and now grandfather to 16 grandchildren.

While individuals may think that Eastland’s greatest decisions might have occurred while working in the White House or developing his business, he personally feels that “the decade from 18 to 28 is when the great decisions of life are made.” Between mission, marriage, family, career, education, and testimony, when individuals are in their 20’s they are determining the rest of their lives with the decisions they make, big and small, every day. 

The  impactful experiences that arose in Larry Eastland’s life were all possible because of the decisions he made in that very important decade, he says. In that important decade, he was a BYU student involved in campus organizations, served a mission in Berlin, Germany, served in the United States Marine Corps, fulfilled numerous callings in the church, worked in the U.S. Senate, married his wife, and began his further education in Political Science at U.S.C.

Eastland’s determination to stay close to the spirit and his love for service guided him to make the decisions that blessed his own life and allowed him to further bless his country and those around him. The choices made in Eastland’s youth led to experiences and blessings that affected not only him and his family, but everyone and everything he has been involved with.

“For most people, the rest [of life] is fulfilling what was laid as a foundation during this decade, ” Eastland shared. Larry Eastland laid his foundation well and has had incredible opportunities as a result.

What kind of a foundation have we and are we laying with the decisions we make? Share your thoughts below and continue pondering how your own decade from the ages of 18-28 have and will impact your life at Dr, Eastland’s Alumni Achievement Lecture, “My Decade of Decisions Began at BYU.” The lecture will take place Thursday, October 5 in room 250 in the Spencer W. Kimball Tower at 11 am. All are welcome to attend.