Following up with our beloved these creative tips in the art of time management effectively, and learn about new ways to invest time in the light of Quran and Sunnah…
Time is a great boon of the Creator’s Almighty blessings. Allah has given every one of us a limited life span to use it in good deeds to gain pleasing Allah. Life is limited and very short. So, to ensure happiness in life and the hereafter, the believer should make himself a plan, determine his priorities and keep away anything that may affect this plan negatively.
Music and its negative effects
After an experience with music for years, I realized that listening to songs is a big waste of time. I have wasted three-year term with the music on the grounds that it “refines the soul” so I spend ten hours playing and hear the singing and sometimes influenced. I think that listening to music is food for the soul, as some people say, but the devil was happy and decorated me this way. Then I left music for the sake of Allah, and the Prophet saying had the greatest impact on this transformation. The Prophet peace be upon him say: (Whoever leave something for the sake of Allah, Allah compensates him better) Allah has already compensated me by the Quran, I have memorized it without any significant effort
Music is associated with exciting feelings and emotions. Man cannot control the ‘consumption of music’. He can not only hear music, but it will evolve to hear singers, and be affected by them and their words … Just like alcohol, a person cannot control abuse of alcohol. He starts drinking little and by time becomes addicted to alcohol. Also, smoking cannot be confined to use a little, but it develops into addiction. It is of paramount to quit smoking, music and looking at the forbidden …Allah will help you to do so, but on condition that you make your work for the sake of Allah.
Supplication is the shortest way to invest time
Have you ever asked yourself why the Prophet peace be upon him pray to God in everything, in the morning, evening, before eating and after and when entering the market and … Man’s sense of proximity to Allah in every moment, makes him surer of himself and more able to make the right decision.
For example, there is a lot of time youth loses in search for a wife! Have you tried asking Allah to help you choose the appropriate wife He wants her for you?! This is what I called Allah for. My wife has been a great help to me to gain time, and this research, articles are only the results of this prayer!
A better pleasure of this world is a good wife. Look with me how many young people spend hours on the Internet, at the university and among relatives in search for a suitable wife. He may have to experience failures, or a prohibited emotional relationship that fails … The solution is simple, it’s prayer.
This is what happened with Moses, peace be upon him when he saw two women and he watered for them, turned back to a shade of a tree and called Allah: “O my Lord! truly am I in (desperate) need of any good that Thou dost send me!” [stories: 24]. And immediately Allah responded to his prayer: “Afterwards one of the (damsels) came (back) to him, walking bashfully. She said: “My father invites thee that he may reward thee for having watered (our flocks) for us.” …) [Stories: 25]. Thus, Allah has provided him with a righteous wife who will help him in this world.
If we think about stories of the Prophets, we will find them resorting to prayer in all their affairs, problems and difficulties. Why not you resort to prayer in every aspect of your business, and Allah has vowed to respond? Prayer will save you time wasted in the search because Allah will facilitate and achieve what you want with less effort and in shorter time!
The experience of putting our trust in Allah Almighty
At one stage I did not have any program for managing time!! However, after I memorized the Quran, I decided to leave all things to Allah, who makes me causes subservient, and He who will bless in time, blessing time is more important than the time itself! I will give you an example from my experience: When I was at the beginning of my journey in writing scientific articles, writing a scientific article takes me one full month of effort and preparation, reading and re-formulation and correcting, but after having relied on Allah and delivered Him everything: my time, will, choices and decisions … Writing an article takes only one day. If you save 29 days, is not that a pool it is a blessed time, which is more important than the time itself?
In this sense, we realize the meaning of the words of Almighty:” Whoever submits his whole self to Allah, and is a doer of good, has grasped indeed the most trustworthy hand-hold: and with Allah rests the End and Decision of (all) affairs. “[Luqman: 22]. Whoever submits his whole self wholeheartedly to Allah Almighty, not afraid of the future and mourn the past, for that Allah Almighty said:” Nay,-whoever submits His whole self to Allah and is a doer of good,- He will get his reward with his Lord; on such shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.” [al-Baqarah: 112]”
Time management by using the good word
A good word does the effect of magic! Through courtesy without lies, hypocrisy, fraud or deception, but spoke the good word, you can comfort the others and this will help you gain confidence, and thus provide the time you waste in sterile debate of no benefit.
A person may lie to you sometimes, do not waste your time in convincing him of his lying to you, but it is enough to say to him, for example: this is a point of view, or: God knows … Or any words to end the talk and save your time. However, in the call to Allah, you must correct others information to as much as possible.
Tolerance is a free method of time management. Promise yourself to tolerate others, be patient of the harm and forgive those who insult you. This method saves you a lot of fruitless discussions, the give and take, so when one considers many real-life stories, which could end in tragedy, we find most of them were susceptible to a solution process which is very simple: tolerance.
Perhaps I am reminded of a story of a student in the Faculty of Engineering defrauded by his friend after “eating” an amount of money on the pretext that it would give him a huge profit. This young man asked me to advise and I told him to complete his studies and Allah will compensate him better than what was taken. Whoever leaves something for the sake of Allah, He will compensate him better. His answer: “Whoever is silent on rightness is a dumb devil” and he will complain in court! I told him that his time is more important, because the man who cheated on you and take some of your money is a bad guy with no morals and does not fear Allah. So, instead of wasting your time in court, if you win this time in the practice of engineering, you will earn more money. Let your trust in Allah be more, but unfortunately he was confident in the court more!
The fraudster lured the engineer again of more money and in a smart way took more money from him. This young man came again to me for advice. I told him “Leave this bad man and Allah is able to give you two fold of what he had taken. He said, “From where?” I said to him, “Allah, who sustains the infidel, atheist and the sinner, is capable of giving a believer who says”, “there is no god but Allah” Nonetheless, he returned again to court….His story dragged through a number of years and the fraudster went to prison…. Then, the young man went to prison on the grounds of an orchestrated fabrication by the fraudster. Thus, the young man missed time and money and at the end he did not get his rights but wasted a lot of time…
Here, we are aware that man when he finds himself in front of several options, he should choose what pleases Allah. Allah Almighty commanded us to practice tolerance, forgiveness, pardon and forgiveness, and vowed that he is going to compensate us better than that, why do not we trust Allah and his tender and living? The Almighty says: “The recompense for an injury is an injury equal thereto (in degree): but if a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah. for ((Allah)) loveth not those who do wrong.” [ Shura: 40]. He also says:” let them forgive and overlook, do you not wish that Allah should forgive you? For Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. [Nur: 22].
Applying the “Separation Principle”
Perhaps the most important process by ( but the most difficult) what I call the “separation principle” to decide any issues of concern to thinking, fragmented, and address each case individually, not overwhelm them on that, this will save your time and a half at least. I will give you an example from my experience, and how I have achieved many, many wonderful application of this principle. It is difficult to apply only at the beginning, but then you feel fun and strength.
At the beginning my interest in research I used to go to a public library. I spend hours reading books, but sometimes I encounter a situation or a problem with a friend, I leave the reading and start thinking about this problem: What happened, what the result will be, how I will address this problem, what I expect to happen in the future, how I will face this friend, why this friend told me this way, and what was intended … Half of the time allocated for the study is lost in negative thinking that can only lead to worry, anxiety and fatigue
Therefore, I resorted to the principle of separation in time management. Time devoted to reading a book was given to this book. If I encounter a problem or a situation, I postpone thinking about it for another time. I assign time that commensurate with the magnitude of the problem. Often, man gives the problem much more than it deserves. Therefore, you should promise yourself not to integrate the daily problems with each other, but these problems should be separated from each other. You should assign each problem a short time to solve. Otherwise leave the worries and problems and seek the help of Allah Almighty, who will resolve them for you, because Allah Almighty is capable of solving your problems no matter how great they are!
The principle of anticipating events
This is a very wonderful principle. It is summarized that your fears that something will happen, such as illness or the prospect of losing a job or loss of trade or fail in a course in the university, or failure in marriage … These things consume a significant portion of your time, which will occur on each event, and your fears and your mind will not prevent it from happening! So what if I could think of other things useful, this means a substantial savings in time. Here, we find a wonderful verse says: “Fighting is prescribed for you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not.” [Al Bagara, The Cow: 216]
Effective Time
This is the time that can be invested in the work of a useful new. Effective time = (24 hours – the number of sleeping hours – the number of feeding hours, getting rid of wastes and the time given to the family, children, etc.) Each one of us may compute the effective time based on his daily needs. In the best cases the effective time would not increase of ten hours per day. This is the time a person can invest in new and useful work.
If we assume that one of us spends his time each day for two hours in following television programs such as sitcoms and other non-beneficial ones. Thus, the rate of time loss is 2 / 10 = 0.20 or twenty percent of the time. Consider that fifth of your time is lost in negative thinking. If this period is exploited in something useful, you will gain fifth of your time without feeling!
I used to waste several hours each day in negative thinking which is not useful, such as fear of failure or fear of disease or thinking of what a friend of mine said about a problem occurred with another friend, or why he did it well or did not do as well as … And so on.
I have applied this rule every day. I have invested these two hours in reading a book, an article, memorizing new verses from the Quran, learning a Prophet saying, or learn a new prayer … Over the whole year I was able to exploit a large number of hours in positive thinking (more than 700 hours), So each one should consider for himself: How much waste of his time in negative thinking and anticipating calamities, though you like it or not, it will happen.
And now here are golden tips
- Consent of what Allah has decided and gave us, even if it is poverty, hunger, disaster, or disease…
- Trust in Allah and that He always chooses what works best and benefits ourselves
- You should stick to received prayers of the Prophet peace be upon him, because supplication is what achieves what you want, and without it, you will suffer a lot to do the work itself!
- Consideration and memorization of the Quran helps you make the best decisions!
- Forgiveness, forgiveness and then forgiveness! This is my advice to those who likes to invest their time freely.
- Do not get angry except for Allah. Do not strain your nerves for something fleeting in this transient world.
- Remember that your life could end at any moment, and then you should not become depressed, sad or worried.
- Finally, if one of us went to meet one of the rich people, he spends few days preparing, thinking and dreaming! So how would be if it is meeting Allah Almighty? What should we prepare for this meeting? Is this the meeting to think about and prepare for it? It is undoubtedly the most important meeting in the life of any creature who will see his creator and sustainer…
- The best way of time management is found in the Quran and the ethics, life and behavior of the Prophet who is the best example to follow, and imitate him without thinking of loss. Since you are imitating the best human, you are always the winner… It was enough that his ethics were the Quran… and it was enough he was of great ethics…
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By: Abduldaem Al-Kaheel
