I read an article in the Journal a couple of weeks ago that contained hard evidence that the universe, in fact, returns the energy that you give it. If you assume the world is a world of empty, your confirmation bias will see it as such and you’ll provoke empty out of the world. However, if you view the world as a magical and bountiful place, it will be that way.

Yeah yeah, there are some constraints to this and you can’t polish a turd, but …

… a dollar donated to charity lead to $3.75 in extra income for the donor in 2000… when people give there is substantial personal transformation… “They tend to work harder,” leading to greater prosperity, and in the long run… “this leads to more success, both financial and nonfinancial.”

Now, was the mindset of abundance that which caused the original donation? That part’s not explored in the article. But I have to say, once I embarked on my I Stole This project, and realized I didn’t need to “cheat” the universe out of what I felt I deserved … once I realized that the universe would provide … my income’s gone up and I’m generally a much happier person than even a year ago.

More from the article:

Joe Engle (85) grew up in a small Ohio town and went to Ohio State University because his family couldn’t afford to send him anywhere else…

“There is no such thing as a self-made man… You are given certain talents, a good memory or ambition or perseverance, and it behooves you to pay it back.”

Amen to that, Joe Engle.