My growth goals
So, the list below pretty much sums up my growth goals as of now. I plan to post monthly or quarterly short update on these to see the progress.
Long list ahead but here goes! Bismillah.
Health- mental, physical and emotional
β πͺπΌ To workout at least twice a week
Okay I know working out twice a week isn't much. Iβve lost the momentum after Ramadhan and on top of that with the lockdown, itβs so hard to restart the routine! So yeah for now, twice a week is good and achievable.
β πͺπΌ To stop eating when full!
Iβve been snacking way too much lately. I really have start listening to the stomach not the nafs.
Hmm maybe I should consider tracking my food intake?
β π§ To learn and improve on practicing mindfulness
Urgh l struggle so much on this, my mind is always all over the place!
I'm not to sure where to start though. Iβll explore more on this, though there's a chance that this goal is related to the next goal.
β π§ To learn more on coping and living with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
Yeah, a recently discovered issue. No worries, I am currently undergoing treatment!
On top of that I just want to learn more about it. I am sure people have some tips and tricks, especially to be more focused and have mindfulness.
β β° To learn more on time management strategies and productivity
Oh I recently discovered this YouTuber, Ali Abdaal. Most of his posts are about productivity and they are good! Now I just need to try to implement them. LOL.
So far I am loving his recommendation on Pomodoro technique, and his co-working videos.
Most importantly, this website idea is inspired by him. So, thank you Ali!
β β° To maintain 6 hour of sleep and track it!
Sigh it is so hard to maintain this, I have tried it all! Essential oils, dim lighting, no screen time before bed.
So I talked to my doctor recently and she gave me some pills to help regulate my sleep as quality sleep is crucial for my ADD treatment.
Oh well, if the doctor says so!
β π©βπ« To consider going to therapy or to hire a life coach
I see some friends hire life coaches and their life improve a lot. Maybe I should as well. Why not?
Oh yeah, money! Duh.
Seriously though I feel that if I can find one that I can vibe with, maybe it will be worth it. We'll see.
Spirituality and religion
β π To continuously learn more about Al Quran and ahadith (recitation, hafazan, tafseer and tadabbur)
Recitation and tafseer
I am currently taking recitation class and tafseer class on weekends. Going strong!
Hafazan
I am doing on my own but I easily forget what I memorize. Sigh. What to do?
Tadabbur
Pretty sure my current progress is approx 20% since early last year. So slow and inconsistent.
So now, I aim to do it on weekly basis. On weekends, 30 mins tops! Not too ambitious, one or two ayah each time.
Achievable right, Syad? Right? Right?
Ahadith
I also have signed up for a class by Ustadh Asad Ali which I for some reason struggle to finish. I enjoy them but just urgh. Recorded classes are much tougher to complete as compared to live classes.
Only 2 classes to go, 90 minutes each. So achievable, Syad! Easy peasy, really!
β π§πΌ To learn more and gain perspective on ideal women in Islam
I can't recall how or why, but I am so interested in learning more about women empowerment in Islam. I believe there is a huge gap between how we generally perceive ideal women in Islam and women power today. What's right? What's wrong?
I have completed Controversial Hadiths About Women by School of Deen and it was insightful, I learnt a lot from it. I am currently reading this book by Ustaz Syaari Ab Rahman, and I enjoy it so far! There are a few other books in queue.
β βοΈ To learn more about Islamic history and application to the modern world
Sounds boring but I believe this can help me to revive and keep me steadfast in my iman.
Back to basics, focus on what matters when time was βsimplerβ.
I enjoy this YouTube series about the Sahabah by Yaqeen Institute so much! So inspiring, I totally recommend. Iβll try to share more about it later.
β π To help Kak Niah to recite the Quran
Our helper cum my nanny who has been with us since 1997 is leaving for good this September. I am currently helping her for her Quran recitation, and I aim for her to finish Iqra before she leaves.
She is now at book 3 out of 6. I believe this is achievable though we may need to invest more time daily.
β π To continuously perfect my prayers
I bought a book that I believe can help me on this. It is about techniques to memorize the meaning of our recitations so that we can focus better.
Bought it months ago, itβs still there, itβs still there on my shelfβ¦
β π To plan and prepare for Hajj
I aim this within the next one decade.
Ambitious? Yes. Feasible? Yes! Pricey though, via private agencies.
So yes, this goal stays. For now I have to do some research on the agencies, packages and quotas they provide. I also need to figure out the financial planning of it, and who to go with in case if I donβt ever get married. LOL.
Career
β To constantly remind myself to keep an open mind on purpose and passion. To have patience
β To learn more about purpose and passion LOL
β To wrap up some work that has been outstanding for awhile.
β To learn more about accounting - brush up knowledge on accounting standards
β To learn more about business - read more news and learn various entrepreneurship skills
β To learn more about e-commerce - read more news and understand the industry better
β To learn more about NGO - read more news and understand the industry better
β To learn more about psychology - consider volunteering
β Job hunting!
Looking at this list, I hope people understand how lost I am on what to do with life. I am not even sure how to elaborate on these goals.
I canβt even decide on the appropriate emojis for each of them. LOL.
Relationships and social life
β β€οΈ To search for a life partner more seriously and commit time for it
β π―ββοΈ To spend quality over quantity time with friends and family
Sigh, the main challenge for these 2 goals above is time. I am making efforts yes, but these are not something that I can just block my calendar and do.
Most of the time these are impromptu. If we cannot sync our time, itβs so easy to lose interest.
β β€οΈπ―ββοΈ To learn more on sustaining healthy relationships
β πΆ To learn about parenting
I believe that one of the reason these two goals have not come to me yet is because Allah knows I am not ready.
So, let's just try this as a way to be ready!
Iβve completed this course by Aiman Azlan a few months ago and it helped me a lot, so straightforward and easy to understand. The course has been updated recently, I should probably revisit as a refresher.
I also have completed this book by Kamalia Kamal. It is a bit more complex, but very insightful. I should really revisit and try to make more effort to implement the techniques.
Hmm for parenting, Iβm sticking to YouTube and TikTok for now.
Skills and hobbies
β π©βπ» To post on this website on weekly basis
and be mindful of my intentions. Sharing here as a scrutiny to help me to grow. Not here with any ill intentions.
β π± To spend less time on non-beneficial entertainment, social media, window shopping and music
The lesser we spend time on these, the more time we can spend on other stuffs.
So far I am happy to say that I managed to not open Netflix and listen to music on Spotify since Ramadhan. Woots! Surprisingly I donβt miss it, alhamdulillah! May it stays this way.
My social media screen time is still high though.
And Shopee. Yes, Shopee. The hours (and money) I spend there is mind-blowing.
β π To read and sign up for courses.
On top of what I have mentioned in this list, I have a number of books and courses of different topics that I have yet to start/complete.
β πββοΈ To sign up for swimming classes (again)
Itβs so hard to improve during lockdown, where to practice?
β π©βπ³ To try to cook something easy and basic once a week
β 𧡠To learn basic sewing
Since Kak Niah is leaving soon, I have to start doing something around here. LOL
β β¨οΈ To improve typing skill
I canβt even describe how horrible my typing skill is.
β πΈπ¦ To (seriously) learn a third language
The idea of learning a language is always so exciting to me. So far I am interested to learn Hindi/Urdu, Spanish and Arabic. (Thanks to growing up watching too much Bollywood movies and telenovelas)
Maybe arabic? So hard, but oh so beneficial. I donβt aim to start this soon though. Maybe to start learning in the next few years?
Personal finance
β πΈ To track my spending
I am not liking the current method and app I am using. Or maybe I just don't want to do it LOL
β π€ To learn on how to reduce impulsive purchases
Is this even possible?
β π To increase regular donations
One of the things I learn in tafseer class is sacrificing your resources (money) can be considered as jihad. So, I want to do my part in this world, and inshaAllah earn the rewards of jihad.
β β°οΈ To learn more about faraid and hibah; and prepare accordingly
Death prep. Maybe I should consider a will too, or a letter? Just to write what is what and where is where.
Seriously, is this list too long? (Yes!) Am I too ambitious? (Pretty much!)
Okay okay donβt stress, letβs repeat the mantra:
Slow progress is still progress.
Slow progress is still progress.
Slow progress is still progress.
I know most of these goals are not SMART. The last thing that I want now is to overwhelm myself. I'll fine tune the list as I progress.
Let's enjoy this journey. We are all work-in-progress! πͺπΌπͺπΌπͺπΌ
Oh, if anyone has any advice or recommendations for me, please feel free to tell me! I am obviously in need.
Till next time! Assalamualaikum.
Love,