Peaceful Time Management

People say life boils down to a few major decisions , but in contrast to that , your daily life's moment-to-moment decisions actually shape your life and between each moment you have two choices to make Follow the voice of your immediate gratification brain or the choice of your future planning brain .

This constant tug-of-war between one mind and two brains is the human design very well described in the tradition of Islam . The nafs wants immediate gratification and the voice of the soul , your fitrah , wants what's best for you in the long run . Nafs would say no need to praise Allah . Too tired today , I'll remember Allah in my thoughts .

Fitrah voice would say we need to submit , praise Allah properly and reap . Remember Allah in my thoughts . Fitra voice would say we need to submit , praise Allah properly and reap the rewards in the afterlife . That is the ultimate type of future planning Planning for Akhira , given we're planning for the unseen .

The same decision making applies to time management , the moment-to-moment decisions about how you'll be spending your time . They're just about either immediate gratification or future planning .

If you notice saying to yourself , I'm so busy , I don't have time , there's so much to do , I can't focus , then this is the result you will create that will become reality to you . I can't focus is not a fact . It's only appearing factual because you've repeated to yourself so many times . Time is a finite source . Everyone has the same amount .

Time itself is neutral . It is outside of you and it's outside of your control . It's a circumstance . All you can do is manage your mind around it , and that will be the secret behind your success . The amount of time available is the same to everyone . So what are some practical tools of time management ? Step number one , of course , is mind management .

No surprises there . Step number two generate three most important goals for yourself . Step number three is to just pick one of these goals for the sake of time management . Step number four is to write out what steps you have to take to move towards this goal today . Step five is what are your measurable results ? Step six write it in the calendar .

Step seven identify as a person who can take the very next step in this process . All of these steps , of course , are surrounded by belief in Allah . I teach my children a concept I call a tawakkul sandwich , which just means you believe in Allah for the completion of the task before and after .

But you are taking all the steps in between to ensure your success . Let's explain what each of these steps mean . First step , before anything , is mind management , of course . Then the second step is to write out the three most important goals to you . Your tendency here will be to think of everything that needs to be done , but refrain from confusion .

Just write out the top three goals that are most important to you . Then the third step is to pick one of these goals for the sake of time management . Your body will protest . It will say so much needs to be done , but just for the sake of this exercise , pick one . Fourth step is to break down the immediate steps you can take for each goal .

Here you'll have a tendency to worry about the how . How will I do this or that ? Not knowing the how , is the comfort-seeking brain creating obstacles ? It's noise . Ignore it for now . Instead , think about what is the very next step that you can take today , this week , towards the goal . This is breaking the goal down into actionable steps .

Step number five is you cannot manage your time if you don't have the result you're working towards . Measure if your time is well spent by the results you achieve , not by how much time or effort you spent on the task . Listen again the amount of time spent on a task does not mean that it was time well spent .

The results you created at the end of that time slot are the only indicator if you spent it well or not . Don't plan on spending a random amount of time writing a report that's due . Instead , say I will be done with 80% of the report in two hours . Measure each block of time against a result .

You could spend 12 hours on a project and it could all be a massive waste of time if you didn't allocate what results you're looking for at the end of it . This , of course , is different than trying and failing .

In that case , the measurable result you created is not what you had originally hoped for , but it is something that you now know will not work for the next time . Waste of time is filled with distractions . It is not a waste of time if you either created your imagined result or if you learned from a failure .

Learning what not to do is not a waste of time . It is , in fact , a part of the process . Now , step number six is to estimate how much time each result will take , and then you get to put that time in your calendar . That calendar should be something that you're likely to follow . I use a digital Google Calendar .

Schedule this time in your calendar and make it non-negotiable . It could be morning time you've dedicated for your self-improvement , daytime for your work , and evening time you've dedicated for your family , hobbies or studies .

Mono-task during each of these blocks of time , because if you worry about the kids when you're working , then you're not really achieving either of these goals . Busyness is created by your mind . You're only capable of active attention to one task , so stay in the moment and keep redirecting attention to the task at hand .

People at this point tell me but I have an attention span of a goldfish . Well , that might be true , but you're also capable of continuously redirecting that attention and with time and practice of this redirection , your attention span will improve .

This refocusing of attentiveness to the task has been proven to be the single highest predictor of success in academics , in relationships and in creating wealth . Iq does not correlate with any of that . Let that sink in for a little bit . Single best predictor of success is attentiveness , the task of your higher brain , not your IQ .

Now imagine one of the benefits of Salah the five daily prayers . They're designed for you to exercise that attention and keep refocusing it back to Allah SWT . If nothing else inspires you to be consistent with salah , then this definitely will .

By prescribing five daily prayers , allah SWT is giving us a method of polishing our attention skills , which also happens to be the best predictor of our worldly success . Now for the same step , step number six .

If you don't know how much time to allocate to a given job , then remember there is such a thing called a Parkinson's law , which means that work will expand to fill the time allotted for its completion . So allow yourself a block of time to generate a result , and that is all the time you'll have for that work .

If you allow four hours to get something done , that is how long it will take . If you allow the same thing one hour , then that's how long it will take . Distractions are what eat up our time . If you allow one hour to accomplish a result , then you'll be forced to forfeit the distractions .

You can use the rest of the three hours for anything else , even to distract yourself , or even to take a nap . If that's what you want , you're welcome . This leads me to step number seven . If you're dreaming about how good it would feel to be at your goal , then you'll just continue to fantasize without getting any results . This is goal fantasy .

You'll get your anticipated pleasure hit from imagining being at the goal , having earned the money , having lost all the weight , having an immaculately clean house . But when it comes to actually shifting your attention to focus from goal to taking steps to do it , all the fantasy will evaporate .

We need to go from goal visualization to thinking of ourselves as a person who can take steps towards it . You have to go back and forth between visualizing the goal and then working towards it . This shift in visualization and focus might happen many times during the process , sometimes multiple times a day or even moment to moment .

So we really have to step out of that hard focus on a goal to creating an identity as a person who takes steps towards it . It will sound something like this I am committed to becoming a person who can lose weight . I am committed to being a person who can stay calm around children .

I am becoming a person who can perform at the highest level at her work . This type of flexible thinking will have you start acting on your goals without procrastination . Some people can procrastinate up until their death , just staying in goal fantasy . You know those people . They spend decades of their lives just planning the next best thing they'll do .

So how can you use these seven steps for time management and high productivity from a place of peace and serenity ? From a place of peace and serenity . Many of us think that we work great under pressure . We do better with deadlines at the last minute because we're under the pressure of the boss , the teacher or the exam .

But that is because we're under the impression that we have somebody to hold us accountable . What if we were to hold ourselves accountable ? The beautiful thing is that when we learn to be our own bosses , that builds integrity with our planning self and it builds confidence .

People only perform better at the last minute because they don't give themselves the opportunity to be distracted . They tune everything else out . What if you did that for yourself just ahead of time ? This will be your neocortex at work .

So time management from a place of peace is that you do things ahead of time , you act like your own boss and you build character . You do 80% of the work ahead of time . This way , you're not constantly racing against the time . With majority of the task done , you can use any remaining time to fine-tune the project .

Don't get stuck daydreaming and getting dopamine from your goal fantasy . Also , don't get stuck in just robotically taking steps towards it . It is about the middle path . It's always about balance and moderation in our religion , alhamdulillah . An example would be something like this Report is due in two weeks , which is one goal .

I'll finish 80% of it in two sittings over the next two days . Calendar in two hours each day to finish 80% of the report . Commit not spending any more time on this task . The two hours that you spend each day will be strict focus time , among all of the rest of the most commonly practiced thoughts .

People also tell me I can't find focus , and the answer to that is that you generate focus . You don't lose focus . It's not something that fell out of your pocket or purse , or it's not something lost out in the jungle to be found . I can't focus is a thought . If you keep thinking that that's the result you will create .

Instead , direct your brain to thinking . I'm becoming a person that can generate focus . I'm learning to be focused . Just these subtle shifts will work wonders . I use all of these methods in my life and , alhamdulillah , I'm able to accomplish so much and have fun while doing all of it .

I am a practicing physician , co-founder of our medical business , which now has seven employees in some capacity or another . I'm the founder of Islamic Life Coach School , host of this podcast . A wife , mother of three , of course , responsible for their homeworks , field trips , dealing with their emotional breakdowns .

President of mother of three , of course , responsible for their homeworks , field trips , dealing with their emotional breakdowns . President of their school PTA . A certified life coach . A volunteer at Saturday school . Also an artist I paint abstract acrylic on recycled canvas with Arabic calligraphy . I love photography and traveling .

Alhamdulillah , I pray tahajjud and istikhara every day . Along with my daily prayers , I am working to recite the Qur'an with proper tajweed . I memorize my du'as , I teach them to my children and we practice all of them together . I do all of that from a place of joy and peace and I refuse to fall victim of time .

I have a choice of doing many things and I choose to do hard things and enjoy it all . Alhamdulillah , I have support , no doubt about that , but I put my effort in . People always tell me you must be so busy , you're doing so many things , and I tell them I'm not busy . I don't feel busy , I just choose to do things in their appropriate time .

I am not a special case , I'm not a unicorn . I just follow what I teach . Getting 80% of the work done ahead of time gives me liberation from worry , and this worry is what actually creates time scarcity . Freedom from worry will create time . You're creating stress when you're putting things off for the last minute .

All we're doing by planning ahead is shifting our energy ahead of time . This way , you're taking control of the situation instead of the situation controlling you . Having made this a deliberate process , you can choose to do it out of feelings of peace , joy and acceptance Rather than hustle and stress .

Just the anticipation of stress will burn up energy and you have the ability to make this decision now , in this very moment .

According to this one brain , two minds , theory of science which , again , is very well articulated in the tradition of Islam , which is the nafs or the voice of the soul , immediate gratification of distraction , procrastination , or planning ahead and being at peace while succeeding . Which one of these minds do you want to follow ?

It will just take a moment to decide . There's no need to make this into a major decision . Which one of these minds do you want to follow ? It will just take a moment to decide . There's no need to make this into a major decision . Like I said in the beginning , it boils down to moment-to-moment choices . You have to be your own accountability partner .

Everyone has the same block of time . People who are busy and think don't have enough time are not managing their minds around it . Follow these seven steps and , inshallah , you will have success . Just to review , step one is mind management . Step two generate three goals . Number three pick one of the three goals .

Number four write out the steps you need to take today . Five create measurable results . Six put them in the calendar . Seven start identifying as a person who can take these steps . After you've made the habit around one goal , you can repeat the same process around the other goals you've created .

And in this time management podcast , I seem to be talking a lot about goals , and that is because , like everything else , we have to direct our time at something . This goal can also be that you just want to relax for a few hours each day . Bring consciousness to all of your priorities , so then you can manage your time around it .

Allah SWT has given us such a beautiful design . I am constantly inspired by it . We have guidance in our religion to separate ourselves from our negative internal dialogue . That part of you that wants to procrastinate , can't find focus and remains in goal . Fantasy is just your nafs . Keeping you in immediate gratification remains in goal .

Fantasy is just your nafs keeping you in immediate gratification . You also happen to have your big brother brain that will set you free of all of these traps while you are feeling accomplished and satisfied .

In Surah Al-Asr , allah swears by time . Allah only swears by things that are valuable . Wal-asr is demanding our attention . Time is valuable and is passing us by . We have to bring heed to the matter , making every second count , not by being stressed , overworking or hustling , but by bringing consciousness to it and planning ahead .

I pray to Allah SWT that we are able to redirect our attention to things that please Him . I pray that our goal to align ourselves with our religious values is our topmost priority . Our values could include creating wealth , getting an education , raising children or resting our bodies , so we are then ready to come back to all of these acts of ibadah .

I pray to Allah that he gives us wisdom to polish our big brother brain so we can proudly stand in front of him on the day of judgment . Inshallah , and say that we did everything humanly possible to obey him and that we drew real and lasting satisfaction from it .

I pray that you guys choose your peaceful time management brain in each moment and if you're looking for the next level of growth in your professional and personal lives , find me at islamiclifecoachschoolcom . All one word . At islamiclifecoachschoolcom , you can book a free consultation and I will also greatly appreciate you leaving me a review for this podcast .

Inshallah , I will talk to you guys next time .