Do you maintain positivity in your relationship or marriage?
Have you ever noticed how often couples blame each other when they feel hurt, angry, or sad? But what if they could take responsibility for their own feelings and moods or learn to practice patience, and spend quality time with one another as a sort of precursor to the afterlife. Saying something like:
“I want to spend my life loving you, taking walks with you, laughing with you, or sharing mutual interests with one another — I do not want to waste our time fighting or complaining — and when life takes its course and we are no longer together, I am going to look forward to meeting up with you in the highest levels of Paradise. May Allah bestow his mercy upon us.”
Imagine what kind of positive effect such an attitude would have on all our relationships, what an enduring legacy that would be.
Are you focused on personal growth?
Though we are all undergoing personal growth, whether we realize it or not, those who take a more conscious approach to their development inevitably achieve a more satisfying, exhilarating, adventurous, and fulfilling life. A good saying to remember is:
“Seize your time before it seizes you!”
In order to kick-start your development; try keeping a regular journal where you can write freely about your dreams and aspirations. Start with five minutes of writing at some quiet point in your day.
You do not have to analyze what comes out — maybe the writing will be a way to deal with challenges or give you a message you really need to hear. The fact is that our pens have a funny way of hearing the messages our hearts yearn to tell us:
- Do you want to memorize some Qur’an?
- Volunteer for a charitable organization?
- Take some classes?
What actions will you take to ensure that you are continuously growing?
If anything were possible, what would your work look like?
When deciding on a career path, it is important to begin with a clear vision of what we want to do, and where we want to be in our positions?
We need to evaluate what we like to do, where we feel most satisfied, and how to get where we want to go? Though many of us stay in jobs we are dissatisfied with (because we believe it is too difficult to make the change), you would be surprised how many routes are available to improve our situations.
Brainstorming with an open mind and giving yourself a permission to think outside the box will reveal all sorts of possibilities.
Only begin to narrow down your focus once you have dreamed up every possible job, career path, or activity you can imagine yourself taking on. Oftentimes, when you allow yourself to open up, you will see that the possibilities are so very possible — they may even be easy changes to make.
Do you have a sense of work-life balance?
It is about clearing the clutter, creating space for quiet time and daily “feel-good” rituals, designed to make you live in the moment, to feel content and rewarded.
It is the way to live a fulfilling life, creating a space that helps you move forward, rather than hindering you or making you feel like you are drowning. Not only is it the way to put the pieces of your life puzzle together, but it also helps to make them shine.
First published: August 2016
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