Adopt the Creator’s Mindset
By now, you know it is a big responsibility. Right?
Being Muslim doesn’t stop in the mosque.
Being a Muslim doesn’t end with being born of Muslim parents.
Being a Muslim doesn’t end with bearing a “Muslim name” or wearing “Muslim dresses.”
No, it goes beyond those.
The moment you accept to be a Muslim, you are assuming a responsibility. A responsibility to accept the challenge to represent Allah.
The question, though, is: what does it mean to represent Allah?
To represent Allah means to accept the duty of establishing justice, compassion, mutual support system, righteousness, and God-consciousness on earth as Allah defines. It is to accept the Prophets' job without being one.
If you are still wondering, this is the summary of the teachings of all revealed religions, and most certainly of Islam.
The endeavour to establish these teachings is what we generally call dawah. Dawah means inviting humankind to the guidance of Allah so that they can have a meaningful material experience in their worldly journey and a fulfilled spiritual experience in the hereafter.
Your job as a Khalifa and Muslim is to become a better representative of Allah and help your descendants, too. You endeavour to improve yourself and help influence your family, from Muslims who only go to the mosque to Muslims who deliberately bring guidance and happiness to the world.
Beyond your family, you also help others, from being Muslims by birth to being Muslims by choice. You become intentional about what and how you contribute to the world around you, not because you were born a Muslim but because you chose to live Islam with a purpose.
Some Muslims only live with the purpose of dying as Muslims. But, as a khalifa with a dawah mission, you exist with the purpose of not only dying as a Muslim but also living life fully as a Muslim.
Living life fully as a Muslim means actively contributing to all systems that keep the world going and sustain civilisation, in addition to religious duties, systems such as politics, international relations, economics, business, media, education, agriculture, family system, etc. A Khalifah considers all these to be his religious duty.
Living life fully as a Muslim means considering dunya as the theatre of deliberate actions for the Muslim, where his intentions, actions, and contributions will determine his position in the hereafter.
"The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: 'The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer, although both are good. Strive for that which will benefit you, seek the help of Allah, and do not feel helpless. If anything befalls you, do not say, "If only I had done such and such"; rather, say, "Qaddara Allahu wa ma sha'a fa'ala (Allah has decreed, and whatever he wills, He does)." For (saying) 'If' opens (the door) to the deeds of Satan.'" — Narrated by Abu Hurairah
So, it’s not enough to bear a “Muslim name” or wear “Muslim dresses.” They are parts of your identity. But they don’t guarantee success.
Think of a football team that is happy with its branded sports kits and a team flag. Yet, they never won any trophy or even a single game.
A Muslim wins by actively and positively contributing to Dunya in Dunya because the path to al-Jannah is Dunya.
The big question is: how do you do this?
The simple answer is to adopt the creator’s mindset.
That is why the Prophet advised us as follows:
Take care of five things before five others: your youth before your old age, your health before your sickness, your wealth before your poverty, your free time before your busyness and your life before your death.
This means that you have control, to a certain extent, over these realities of your life. Otherwise, the Prophet would not bother telling us to care for those aspects of our lives.
By adopting the concept of the creator's mindset, you can take your life in the direction you desire with the permission of Allah.
But what is the creator mindset?
The Creator's Mindset
You see, as a Khalifah on a dawah mission, you are taking the job of Prophets. Even though you are not one. And on this mission, there are a lot of obstacles that will come your way in manners that you never expect.
Remember, your mission's primary goal is to spread a bundle of messages across to the collective consciousness of a large number of people who together become the holders of a civilisation brought to life by these messages based on God’s will.
On your journey to establish this civilisation through your dawah efforts among Muslim parents by building a community or among the general populace, you may find it challenging to navigate through the various obstacles that come your way.
This is when you will find the concept of the creator's mindset extremely useful. This concept will help you overcome challenges and achieve your set goals.
The concept of the Creator's Mindset is based on the idea that you have the power to create your own reality and that you are not a victim of your circumstances, although you may choose to become a victim.
This mindset helps you shift from a problem-focused approach in your dawah journey to a solution-focused one, where you become proactive in finding solutions to all your challenges.
Because you already know there will be problems and difficulties on this journey, you are well prepared and don’t lament. You keep doing your work, and when any problem occurs, you don’t act like a victim. You strive to take control of the situation by working out different solutions until you get the best one.
To successfully use the creator's mindset to solve any challenge you face, you need to be aware of three of the main elements of this concept:
The Creator
This aspect of the Creator's Mindset reminds you that you are not a passive recipient of your reality but an active creator of it.
As a Muslim, you have the power to create change and spread the message of Islam to those around you. Adopting a Creator's Mindset allows you to take responsibility for your Dawah efforts and actively seek opportunities to share your faith.
Allah says in the Qur’an: “Say: act, for Allah and the messenger and the believers will see your deeds…” Q:9:105
So you can’t sit down and do nothing in the face of challenges waiting for Allah to come down and solve the problem. You must act and pray to Allah to bless your efforts.
The Challenger
The Challenger represents the obstacles and challenges you face on your Dawah journey.
It is important to remember that these challenges are not insurmountable and that you can overcome them with the right mindset. Rather than being discouraged by these challenges, you can see them as opportunities to learn, grow, and become better equipped to share your faith. The challenges you face can be big or small. But they are all surmountable.
It may take a longer or shorter period. But never give up. Craft out different approaches and solutions to the problems facing you by yourself or reach out to …
The Coach
The Coach represents the support system you need to help you overcome challenges and achieve your goals.
As a Muslim on a mission, you can rely on the support of your fellow Muslims, your community, and, most importantly, Allah (SWT). You can also seek out mentors and role models who can provide you with guidance and support on your Dawah journey. The idea of a coach can also mean reading a good quality book that can provide ideas on how to solve the challenge you are currently facing.
It could mean you are taking an online course. If your challenge is a lack of funds for a project, for example, and you cannot raise funds from others, you could start a business that requires $0 to begin but provides high return revenue for your efforts.
The internet has a lot of successful entrepreneurs starting businesses with zero capital.
A proper understanding of the three elements of the Creator’s Mindset will give you the power to create change and spread the message of Islam to those around you. With the right mindset and support system, you can fulfil your duty to share the message of Islam and positively impact the world.
This is all about taking responsibility for whatever happens to you. Responsibility is a key element of the concept of the Creator's Mindset. When you adopt a Creator's Mindset, you take responsibility for your actions, outcomes, and impact on others. This means recognising that you have the power to create change with the permission of Allah and that your actions have consequences.
The Responsible Muslim
As a Muslim, you have a responsibility to share the message of Islam with others and to act as ambassadors of your faith.
This means taking responsibility for your actions and efforts and being mindful of your impact on those around you. You must strive to represent Islam in the best possible way, demonstrating its values and principles through your words and actions.
The Challenger element mentioned above also highlights the importance of responsibility. When faced with a challenge or obstacle, you are responsible for taking action and finding solutions rather than waiting for someone else to solve the problem. By taking responsibility for your actions and efforts, you can become proactive in finding solutions and positively impacting the world.
Similarly, the Coach element plays a role in responsibility as you seek out mentors and role models who can guide and support you in your Dawah efforts. By taking responsibility for your learning and growth, you can seek the resources and support you need to achieve your goals.
Locus of Control
The Idea of responsibility makes something very clear: The concept of locus of control is closely related to the Creator's Mindset.
Locus of control refers to an individual's belief about how much they can control the events that affect them.
Individuals with an internal locus of control believe they have control over their lives, while those with an external locus of control believe that their lives are controlled by external factors such as luck or fate.
While as a Muslim you believe in qadar, you also understand that it is only qadar when Allah says so. This is to say that you can only talk about qadar when you are dead in most cases. As long as you are alive:
“Act, for Allah will witness your deeds. So do His messenger and the believers. Then, you will be turned to meet the Knower of the hidden and known universe. Then, He will inform you of all you have been doing.” Q:9:105
This is to draw your attention to the fact that Allah has granted you enormous power to achieve anything you work towards. It may take long, but it is not impossible.
Whether or not your efforts will fail is none of your business. It is Allah's responsibility. Yours is to act within the boundary of Allah.
Now that you understand that you have some control over whatever you face let’s go back briefly.
In the previous letter, Champion a Children Development Waqf, we talked about protecting and enhancing the Islamic civilisation in your community through influencing education and social institutions.
You might think I am asking you to realise an impossible feat. But the truth is that if you believe you can or can't achieve it, you are right.
But don't forget, if you fail to make a choice, someone will make one for you. And your failure to choose to do the right thing, however difficult it seems, is also a choice.
You have the power to create the future you want with the permission of Allah.
In the next letter, I will share how to Build a Realistic Source of Family Passive Income within the digital economy. Protecting, promoting, and enhancing the Islamic civilisation through the family requires every individual taking on that responsibility to become financially independent to a high degree.
Every Muslim at this age needs to learn how to earn a decent income that makes it possible for them to work for their children instead of their bosses. And I will share ideas we can all work with to make it a reality.
In the meantime...
I encourage you, if you have not, to:
Enrol in my free course, LIFE Mastery: 7-Day Mind-Awakening Lessons for the Conscious Muslim.
You will learn how to leverage dawah for:
Social impact,
Personal solutions, and
Building a legacy with continuous rewards in the akhira.
Unlock the exclusive 4-step dawah framework every Muslim can use to make a positive change in their own life and the lives of others.
Jazakumullahu khayran