Some of the most pivotal life decisions happen during our 20s: choosing careers, finding apartments, getting married, starting families. BYU family life professor Larry J. Nelson (BS ’94, MS ’96) recently studied the impact of choices we make between ages 18 and 29 and found two behaviors consistently correlated with well-being in later adulthood: education and volunteer service. Education provides tangible benefits— employment, income—that reduce stress. Regarding service, Nelson explains, “Young adults who serve and volunteer learn to look beyond themselves. They learn to think about and care for others.”
