By Stephanie Francom

Do you think it’s really possible that pursuing a goal doesn’t have to mean running ourselves into the ground? Could it be that we’re actually making it harder than it needs to be? Is there any chance we can count on a little unseen help along the way?

I believe so. Truly.

I believe there are scientific laws—steadfast, reliable, unchanging. They simply are. Just like the sun going down at night and rising again in the morning. It’s constant. Predictable. (At least so far. 😉)

And just like physical laws, there are also Laws of Thought—universal principles that govern the way we create and experience life. One of these is the Law of Cause and Effect. You may have heard it called other names: the Law of the Harvest, or the Law of the Sower. The idea is simple:

When you move forward in a specific direction, there is an equal force moving in the opposite direction.

Wait—what?

Let me put it another way:

When you commit to a goal and take a step toward it, your goal takes a step toward you.

Really!? Yes! The distance between you and your dream shrinks with every step you take.

This is one of my favorite laws because it takes so much pressure off. (And who isn’t looking for a little relief from pressure?) Big goals can feel overwhelming—so many unknowns, so much to do. But when you really understand the Law of Cause and Effect, something shifts. Hope returns. Light breaks through. Because you realize:

You don’t have to go the whole way.
You just have to go halfway.

I hope you love this next part—because it makes me so happy to share!

About 14 years ago, my husband and I set a big goal: we wanted to pay off our house. We’d gotten a 15-year loan to speed things up, but our real goal was to knock it out in seven years. So we got focused. We tightened our budget and started making double payments. My husband even made a chart to track our progress, which really helped keep us motivated.

Every so often, I’d feel a nudge to look again at the budget—to see if we could squeeze out just a little more. And every time I followed that prompting, we got closer to our goal.

One day I got this strong impression to try to find just $100 more. I was thrilled when I figured out how to do it! I rushed to share the news with my husband, but he paused and said he felt strongly that the extra money needed to go into savings.

Blah. I was totally deflated—but I trusted him.

Then he reached into his pocket and tossed me his paycheck. I looked at it and noticed something strange: the amount had changed. He had received an unexpected raise—and after taxes, it came out to exactly $100! Neither of us had known it was coming, but there it was: enough to put $100 into savings and still apply $100 to the mortgage.

Little miracles like that happened all along the way. And to our complete astonishment, we paid off our home not in seven years—but in three and a half.

We hadn’t even heard of the Law of Cause and Effect at the time. But looking back, we lived it. My head still spins just thinking about it.

So let’s return to that original question:

Could it really be possible that pursuing a goal doesn’t require us to burn out or wear ourselves down?

Absolutely.

When we understand the Law of Cause and Effect, our goals feel more attainable, more peaceful—even a little magical. So take a breath. Relax for a moment. And remember:

Every time you take a step forward, your goal takes a step toward you.
You don’t have to chase it all the way.
Just meet it in the middle.

You’ve got this.

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