The Productive Reflection & Evaluation Exercise + The Best Decision-Making Process

Many people don't like to think and reflect for a short period of time let alone for long periods. They find it uncomfortable and don't really see the benefits of doing so. But the amount of gems that can be acquired from spending a considerable amount of time thinking and reflecting can make us think twice. Allāh (God) encourages us numerous times in the Qur'ān to think, reflect and ponder. In this piece, we will in Shā Allāh be going over how to practically reflect in a highly productive fashion as well as the best way to come to a decision in order to help us progress multiple times faster on our journey to becoming immensely wealthy for the sake of Allāh.

The 'productive reflection & evaluation exercise'

To ensure we succeed on our path to becoming very wealthy, it is imperative for us to constantly take time out routinely to reflect and evaluate aspects in relation to our entrepreneurial projects or actions we are taking to become exceptionally rich. Important aspects we ought to reflect on includes whether we can do things better than our current way/method/strategy; solutions to problems/challenges we are facing; developing better character qualities and long term vision. To help us put this reflection exercise into practice in an effective way, we can practice what I call the 'productive reflection & evaluation exercise' which is a simple 3-step process as follows:

Step 1 - Find a scenario where you can easily think in the best way or sharply, i.e. your creative thinking process is stimulated. Possible scenarios include: whilst walking; when lying down on your bed and staring at the ceiling; when looking outside your bedroom window; whilst in the park somewhere surrounded by nature; when on top of a hill where you can see the landscape and whilst sitting down in your car.

Step 2 - Once you discover which scenario works best for you, be willing/mentally prepared to spend one to a few hours for this 'productive reflection & evaluation' exercise. Take all the time you need to think, i.e. you think at a very slow pace if need be, thus relaxed. By being in a relaxed state, you can easily and sharply reflect, in turn, being effective in coming to solutions and understanding or seeing your thoughts clearly.

Step 3 - Apply steps 1 and 2 whenever you need to, in general. It could be every few days. At times, it could be after a few weeks. You have to observe and analyse your circumstance, in turn, make the decision on when it would be best to carry out this exercise.

Looking at it from a significant perspective, what you're doing by applying the 'productive reflection & evaluation exercise', is digging deep to discover more about yourself including what your values and principle are. It goes without saying, they must be in conformity with the Qur'ān & Sunnah. The more a person knows themselves, the more successful they are as they can then leverage this knowledge of what their values are, i.e. what leads to them functioning in the best way. They can also understand thoroughly their weaknesses by which they can avoid situations where their weaknesses show up and have more of a negative impact. By employing this internal knowledge of oneself, one can be at the highest levels of productivity, thus over time, accomplish much more than otherwise. The more relevant knowledge they have about themselves which they leverage and apply where applicable, the higher their productivity and quality of life. Applying the 'productive reflection & evaluation exercise' just once can lead them to progressing towards their goals, around 5-15 times faster than before.

Reflection on becoming rich

Through applying the 'productive reflection & evaluation exercise' I mentioned above, ask yourself the following pertinent questions to be sure of which specific route would be best for you:

• Would it be better for me to tread the path of becoming financially stable but not so rich?

• Would it be better for me personally to manage one simple business or multiple businesses?

• Would it be better for me to become a multi-millionaire or a billionaire?

Of course we aim very high but we are all different. Some of us may prefer to not go global with our brand/company/organisation for good reasons. Having said that, over time, people's minds can change as they learn new things. This results in them beginning to develop in those new areas and becoming competent/developing the ability to manage and handle more than before.

Here are further pertinent questions you should ask yourself to have more certainty if this path of being very rich is the one for you:

• What would you do if you were to become a billionaire?

• What would be the righteous/best thing to do with the wealth if one becomes a billionaire?

• Is this righteous management of the surplus wealth from the billions you have something you sincerely want to develop?

Best help for decision-making

The best way to reach any decision including on whether to tread the path of making millions of pounds, is by first doing our part of weighing up the pros and cons through asking ourselves pertinent questions such as the ones above. As part of taking the means, where appropriate, we are encouraged to consult the believers who can provide sincere advice for us, whether it be family members, relatives, companions, the scholars, the wise ones, the leaders, the knowledgeable ones and so on. After that, we then turn our face towards The Best Helper, seeking His Help. Who is the Best Helper?

Allāh says:

'Nay, Allāh is your Maulā (Patron, Lord, Helper and Protector, etc.), and He is the Best of helpers.' [1]

This help of Allāh can be sought through making istikhārah. By making istikhārah, you are seeking the Help of Allāh in coming to the correct decision. By making istikhārah, after doing our means as explained above, we can have confidence in our decision on whether to embark on this journey of becoming exceptionally rich or not. Through applying all of that, we will in Shā Allāh (if Allāh (God) wills) be guided by Allāh to do that which is good and best for us.

How do we make istikhārah? We first pray 2 raka'ah other than the obligatory prayers intending it for istikhārah. You pray those 2 raka'ah and after ending the prayer you make a du'ā' (supplication), the one which can be seen in the hadīth below. Within this du'ā', as you can see, it says in brackets 'then mention the thing to be decided'. You simply mention here your decision such as saying 'going ahead with buying this course on how to be very wealthy'. After completing the du'ā', you then continue to act in accordance with your decision and if it's not good for you then it is hoped Allāh would prevent you from going ahead with this journey of becoming very wealthy. It may be in the form of an obstacle in your path that prevents you from doing so. Here is the hadīth on making istikhārah:

قال جابر بن عبد الله رضي الله عنهما: كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ، يُعلمنا الاستخارة في الأمور كلها كما يعلمُنا السورة من القرآن ، يقول: إذا هم أحدكم بالأمر فليركع ركعتين من غير الفريضة ، ثم ليقل: "اللهم إني أستخيرك بعلمك ، وأستقدرك بقدرتك ، وأسألك من فضلك العظيم فإنك تقدِرُ ولا أقدِرُ ، وتعلم ولا أعلم ، وأنت علام الغيوب ، اللهم إن كنت تعلم أن هذا الأمر - يسمي حاجته - خير لي في ديني ومعاشي وعاقبة أمري - أو قال: عاجله وآجله - فاقدره لي ويسره لي ، ثم بارك لي فيه ، وإن كنت تعلم أن هذا الأمر شر لي في ديني ومعاشي وعاقبة أمري - أو قال: عاجله وآجله - فاصرفه عني واصرفني عنه ، واقدر لي الخير حيث كان ، ثم ارضني به "

وما ندم من استخار الخالق، وشاور المخلوقين المؤمنين وتثبَّت في أمره، فقد قال سبحانه ﴿وَشـاوِرْهُـم في الأمْـرِ فَـإِذا عَـزَمْـتَ فَتَوَكّـلْ عَلـى الله﴾

'Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allāh be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (ﷺ) used to teach us to seek Allāh's Counsel in all matters, as he used to teach us a Sūrah from the Qur'ān. He would say:

When anyone of you has an important matter to decide, let him pray two rak'ahs other than the obligatory prayer, and then say: Allāhumma innī astakhīruka bi `ilmik, wa astaqdiruka biqudratik, wa as'aluka min faḍlika ‘l-`Aẓīm, fa'innaka taqdiru wa lā aqdir, wa ta`lamu wa lā a`lam, wa anta `allāmu ‘l-ghuyūb, Allāhumma in kunta ta`lamu anna hādha ‘l-amra - [then mention the thing to be decided] Khayrun lī fī dīnī wa ma`āshī wa `āqibati amrī - [or say] `ājilihi wa ājilih - faqdurhu lī wa yassirhu lī thumma bārik lī fīh, wa in kunta ta`lamu anna hādha ‘l-amra sharrun lī fī dīnī wa ma`āshī wa `āqibati 'amrī - [or say] `ājilihi wa 'ājilihi - faṣrifhu `annī waṣrifnī `anh, waqdur liya ‘l-khayra ḥaythu kān, thumma arḍinī bih. "O Allāh, I seek the counsel of Your Knowledge, and I seek the help of Your Omnipotence, and I beseech You for Your Magnificent Grace. Surely, You are Capable and I am not. You know and I know not, and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allāh, if You know that this matter [then mention the thing to be decided] is good for me in my religion and in my life and for my welfare in the life to come, - [or say: in this life and the afterlife] - then ordain it for me and make it easy for me, then bless me in it. And if You know that this matter is bad for me in my religion and in my life and for my welfare in the life to come, - [or say: in this life and the afterlife] - then distance it from me, and distance me from it, and ordain for me what is good wherever it may be, and help me to be content with it."

Whoever seeks the counsel of the Creator will not regret it and whoever seeks the advice of the believers will feel confident about his decisions, for Allāh has said in the Qur'ān: "And consult them in the affair. Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allāh."' [2]

Since the arabic words for the above hadīth do not have the harakāt (vowels), I will add the du'ā' in Arabic below from a different narration to help you memorise this du'ā' correctly. if you cannot read Arabic, the transliteration in the hadīth above can help you memorise it. If you are able to read Arabic, then it's better to memorise it through the Arabic words to make sure you've pronounced all words and letters correctly.

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْتَخِيرُكَ بِعِلْمِكَ وَأَسْتَقْدِرُكَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ، وَأَسْأَلُكَ مِنْ فَضْلِكَالْعَظِيمِ، فَإِنَّكَ تَقْدِرُ وَلاَ أَقْدِرُ وَتَعْلَمُ وَلاَ أَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتَ عَلاَّمُ الْغُيُوبِ، اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الأَمْرَ خَيْرٌ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي ـ أَوْ قَالَ عَاجِلِ أَمْرِي وَآجِلِهِ ـ فَاقْدُرْهُ لِي وَيَسِّرْهُ لِي ثُمَّ بَارِكْ لِي فِيهِ، وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّ هَذَا الأَمْرَ شَرٌّ لِي فِي دِينِي وَمَعَاشِي وَعَاقِبَةِ أَمْرِي ـ أَوْ قَالَ فِي عَاجِلِ أَمْرِي وَآجِلِهِ ـ فَاصْرِفْهُ عَنِّي وَاصْرِفْنِي عَنْهُ، وَاقْدُرْ لِي الْخَيْرَ حَيْثُ كَانَ ثُمَّ أَرْضِنِي بِهِ [3]

Footnotes:

[1] Al-Qur'ān, Āli 'Imrān(3):150

[2] Al-Bukhārī 7/162, Āl-'Imrān(3):159. Hisn al-Muslim 74. Accessed from:

https://sunnah.com/hisn:74

[3] Sahīh al-Bukhārī 1166. Accessed from: https://sunnah.com/bukhari:1166