Mohammed Faris - The Productive Muslim Manifesto: 10 Essential Qualities Every Muslim Needs to Rebuild a Productive Ummah

ISBN: 9781483557687

Is this manifesto right for me?

The ProductiveMuslim manifesto is for every Muslim and Muslimah who:

• Strives to please Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'aala.
• Strives to follow the sunnah of Prophet Muhammad sallAllahu alayhi wasallam.
• Strives to uphold their responsibility as khulafa (vicegerents) of the Earth.
• Feels helpless or frustrated with the plight of the Ummah worldwide and is looking for a productive way they can help.
• Wants to achieve a healthy and balanced life spiritually, physically, and socially, in accordance to the teachings of the Qur'an and the sunnah.
• Struggles with personal daily challenges of juggling work, studies, family life, social life, and their Muslims responsibilities.
• Wants to be part of the solution to rebuild a 'Productive Ummah' for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'aala.

The world can change. It starts with you.

Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.

[Qur'an: Chapter 13, Verse 11]

Assalamualaikum brothers and sisters.

You are here because you have a seed in your heart waiting to sprout.

Within that seed there is a great potential and with that a great responsibility to fulfil your highest potential so that you can help the Ummah, take part in restoring truth and dignity in society, and uphold Islam for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'aala.

You are excited to plant this seed where you can be of benefit. Yet at the same time, you are crippled by fear and doubt. It almost feels like the precious seed inside of you does not have the nourishing support it needs to thrive.

Just by looking around, you see many challenges that go against the Muslim way of life. Our Ummah has plunged into a painful plight from poverty, war, terrorism and Islamophobia, to Muslims themselves who have gone astray due to ignorance or influence from the secular society that tends to be distanced from what pleases Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'aala.

SubhanAllah. Things seem bleak. But YOU have a choice.

You can choose to simply accept the situation and become a passive observer watching from the sidelines as the Ummah plunges further into chaos; or you can choose to take active steps, water that seed in your heart, and become productive participants in rebuilding this Ummah; person by person.

I know just by reading this report that you want to become a productive participant in rebuilding this Ummah, ma sha Allah!

I also know that you, like millions of other Muslims who share the same sincere intention, just don't know where to start. After all, you can barely manage your day-to-day responsibilities, so how are you possibly going to tackle the Ummah's problems?

In sha Allah, the next few pages will be aimed at giving you the starting platform you need to become a ProductiveMuslim.

In this manifesto, you will find 10 essential qualities that every Muslim needs to develop within themselves so that they become a beneficial part of the solution that rebuilds this Ummah, in sha Allah.

Here's what you can expect in this manifesto:

The 10 Essential Qualities:

You will learn 10 essential qualities needed to live a truly productive lifestyle for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'aala spiritually, physically, and socially. As we introduce each essential quality, we will explain why it is a pre-requisite to being a ProductiveMuslim, and how it is a starting point to rebuilding a 'Productive Ummah'.

Practical Holistic Productivity Tips:

After each essential quality is explained, you will find actionable steps that you can implement right away to start developing that quality. The steps are small and easy, but do not underestimate its power! Just by following these steps, it will create an essential change that propels you towards a productive holistic lifestyle, which in turn can grow to become a foundational piece to rebuilding the Ummah, in sha Allah.

If you're excited to begin this change and are ready to put behind you the days of heedlessness and wastefulness, then you're ready to join us and millions of other brothers and sisters in the ProductiveMuslim movement.

Welcome. May Allah accept your deeds and make your path easy.

Sincerely,

Mohammed Faris, a.k.a. "Abu Productive"

Founder, ProductiveMuslim.com

Table of Contents

Essential Quality #1:

Pursue everything in life with an active intention

If you were to review your life today, will you describe it as an "Intentional Life" or a "Spontaneous Life"?

Knowing the distinction between a life of intention and a lifestyle where you simply go with the flow is important. It's the first step to becoming a ProductiveMuslim, and it requires you to rethink and reapply the concept of Intention more powerfully to your daily life.

What do I mean by an intentional life? Let me explain with an example.

Imagine two friends Ahmed and Omar who both started college around the same time. Ahmed was leading an intentional life. He planned and focused his time and effort on different areas of his life towards the betterment of his akhirah (hereafter) and dunya (this world).

Ahmed focused on his daily prayers, got involved in da'wah activities, focused on his studies, and stayed physically fit. At any point in time, Ahmed is focused and knows exactly what and why he's doing something. Even his rest, fun and social times are intentional. As a result he builds healthy and loving relationships with family, friends, and the community.

On the other hand, Omar is more of a "go with a flow" person. Although he attends his classes and does his homework, he's not too bothered to give it full focus. It's just something that he "has to do" and he does the bare minimum he needs to get by.

Omar might have one or two intentions related to getting good grades and finding the right job, but beyond that, he won't push himself too hard. He doesn't really bother taking care of his health either. His focus on his spiritual life is much the same; without much time and effort spent to strengthen his iman or get involved with the community.

Now which of the two lifestyles is more powerful? Which one do you think will lead to more success in this world and the next?

It is, without doubt, an intentional life.

So what is an intentional life and how do you achieve it?

We tend to think of intention as the thought we have before we perform an act of worship or embark on a good deed or project. Yet, this is just the basic form of using intentions.

An intentional life goes beyond the basic form of intention, and leverages its true power to achieve excellence and high levels of productivity.

How do you leverage the true power of intentions?

Simply by thinking differently about the moments in your life and asking yourself better and higher-quality questions like:

• "What's my intention now?"
• "How am I serving Allah subhanahu wa ta'aala by doing this act?"
• "Why do I want this/Why should I do this?"
• "How can I benefit myself and others by this act?"
• "How can I have a higher/better intention to boost my productivity?"

You might be thinking, "Well, I like the go with the flow attitude. I don't want to stress myself out with too much planning". That's fine if you want to join Abu Unproductive ;)!

Now that you're on this journey, I want you to reach your full potential and be more intentional about your life.

From this moment onwards, think differently about INTENTION and try to be more INTENTIONAL about your life. Be intentional about your work, your family, your