It's the happiest day of the year,
but also the saddest.
New Year's Day,
a day that is marked
with unwavering hope,
high ambition, motivation, goal setting
and record numbers of people
signing up to go to the gym.
Yet it's
also a day
that's been labeled by one sixth
of Britain's population
as the most depressing day of the year.
So much so, it's a day
that's actually infamous
for delivering a spike in suicide rates.
But why?
Why is a day
that is so joyful
and motivating for some,
so miserable for others?
But it's not the reason why
I'm making this video.
I don't just want to know why
this day is depressing.
But more importantly,
what can we do
to stop this from happening?
So stick with me.
And don't forget to subscribe too.
To put it short,
the reason why New Year's Day is
so depressing
is because it's
a day of self accountability
and a day of self-reflection,
a day of measuring one's success.
And that's incredibly excruciating
for so many.
It eats us up.
And it really shouldn't.
I mean, we as Muslims
strongly believe in self
accountability and reflection,
whether that be at the end of every year,
the week or even the day.
It's called Mahasabha
and something
which is highly recommended to do.
The Prophet
Muhammad (pbuh) actually noted
that the one who practices
this regularly
is from the intelligent and wise.
But there's a clear difference
we need to know.
When our understanding of success
is solely focused on the material world,
like our financial status, our grades,
and our career.
We are setting ourselves up
for disappointment
and it only gets worse
when we start comparing ourselves
to others.
It's not a fair measure of success,
and we shouldn't let it get to us.
I mean, let's take your financial status,
for instance.
As much as people love to paint it out
like it's
as simple
as following a step
by step process to become a millionaire.
And all you have to do
is put your mind to it
and join my six week
online program
for as little as $1,000 a week
so you can retire at 25.
It's just not the case.
The world was never designed to be fair,
nor to provide
an equal playing field of opportunity.
Allah actually promises us in the Quran
that He will
raise others over
others in wealth as a test.
And He tells us that he will favor
some over others.
It's the nature
of the world that we live in
and there's nothing we can do about it.
You can very well
put in the same amount of effort, hours
and energy
as the next person
and be met
with a completely different result.
There are entire books
written on this concept
just illustrating the sheer
amount of luck or chance
involved in generating wealth
or achieving success factors
ranging from the date
you were born to the language
you speak,
and even your ethnicity from birth.
Factors
we have absolutely no control over.
Yet they are incredibly important
in determining your chances of success.
And I don't deny this at all.
But the only difference is
we don't call it luck or chance.
We call it Qadar, the decree of Allah,
the belief
that everyone is allocated
a portion of wealth in this world.
And that's just the way it is.
A belief
that not only grants us contentment,
but also protects us from feeling sad
when things don't go our way
because things won't always go our way.
So it really makes no sense
to place our value
and self-worth
in things
that are not only incredibly unfair,
but extremely fragile.
I mean, this year showed us
exactly how fragile
wealth is,
how quickly it comes,
and how quickly it goes.
Just ask Kanye West.
I went from being a multi-billionaire
to not being able to use my Apple pay.
And please don't get me wrong,
I'm not saying we should start
to devalue material wealth in our life.
Nor am I saying we should stop
setting goals.
These are all important
and well-deserving
of our time, energy and effort.
I'm just saying
it's time we reconsider
the way we assess and measure success.
You see, when Allah speaks about wealth
in the Qur'an, he presents a beautiful
verse. Wealth and
children
are the adornment of this worldly life.
But the everlasting good deeds
are far better with your Lord in reward
and in hope.
You see as beautiful as wealth is,
it is temporary and eventually leave us.
Yet when we look at our good deeds
as a measure of success,
it is a measure that is everlasting.
And while we can only hope and pray
that our efforts
towards gaining wealth in this world
will be met with success,
we are guaranteed a return with Allah
when it comes to our deeds.
It's a measure of success
that will not let you down.
And while financial success in this world
is riddled with disparity
and unequal opportunity,
gaining success with Allah
is open to everyone,
regardless of who you are.
I mean,
a group of people came up to the Prophet
(pbuh) complaining
that the wealthy from among them
were taking all the reward.
They fast and pray just like they do.
But the wealthy were able
to give in charity
in a way that they weren't.
So the Prophet (pbuh) responds
and he says,
Hasn't Allah
given you that
which you can give in charity?
In every SubhanAllah, there's a charity.
In every Allahu Akbar, there's a charity.
In every Alhamdulillah,
there's a charity.
And in every La ilaha Ila Allah
there is a charity.
This proves to us
that there isn't a circumstance
we can find ourselves
in, except that there is a door open
for you
to attain value and success with Allah.
Whether you're a student, a husband
or wife, a mother, a father,
an employee, an employer.
Whatever stage you are in your life,
there's a door
and opportunity
waiting to offer you success.
So don't box
your idea of success into a category
that is unfair, fragile and temporary.
Don't limit
your understanding of success
to the point it corrodes your self-worth.
Take your understanding of success away
from the temporary
and tie it to the eternal.
It is far better for you
to put your hope in
and guarantees
you are far greater return.
So you hold yourself to account.
Engage in self-reflection.
But don't sell yourself short.
You do have value.
And it's tied to something far greater
than this world.