ASPIRE INSTITUTE

Author: Yazid

  • Be The Best That You Can Be By Doing It Better

    Tip of the day on Being More Positive with a verse from Al-Quran:

    Day 11: Be The Best That You Can Be By Doing It Better

    Allah s.w.t. says in Surah Al-i-Imran, verse 48:

    ﴾فَآتَاهُمُ اللَّـهُ ثَوَابَ الدُّنْيَا وَحُسْنَ ثَوَابِ الْآخِرَةِ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ ﴿١٤٨

    So Allah gave them the reward of this world and the good reward of the Hereafter. And Allah loves the doers of good. (48)
    Surah Al-i-Imran, 3:48

    Today, I would like you to look at the last word in the verse and reflect, which is al-muhsinin, generally translated as doers of good. Technically that is not the wrong translation, but linguistically it also encompass the meaning of doers of a good thing BETTER.

    We always pray to Allah s.w.t. asking Him to provide us with goodness in this world and goodness in hereafter. Fiddunya Hasanah Wa Fil Akhirati Hasanah. In other words we see ourselves as seekers of goodness. Now, what do we need to do to get that? So this is what the verse in surah Al-i-Imaran answers; you get that by BEING THE PERSON WHO DOES GOOD THINGS BETTER. And the reward, good reward in this world and even better reward in hereafter.

    Research shows that when you put PASSION in what you are doing, POSITIVITY flows through you and you will enjoy what you are doing. And you do that by connecting yourself to your PURPOSE. Believe that there are no accidents in this world, Allah is perfect. So when we find our PURPOSE and we include PASSION in our work we will get that POSITIVITY like those who keep DOING GOOD THINGS BETTER.

    And Allah s.w.t. said HE loves these people. MasyaAllah! “May we be among those whom Allah’s love”. What a great doa to pray for at the start of the day, especially if you are reading this on a Friday. The Most Blessed Day Of The week.

    Have A Great Positive Day And Be The Best!

    To subscribe to this daily positivity tips from a verse from Al-Quran,
    send a whatsapp to: +65 9226 0967

    with the message:
    “Yes! Yes! Yes! I want to be positive!”

  • Write A Gratitude Letter, Do An Act Of Gratitude

     

     
    Tip of the day on Being More Positive with a verse from Al-Quran:

    Day 10: Write A Gratitude Letter, Do An Act Of Gratitude

    Allah s.w.t. says in Surah Saba, verse 13:

     يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِن مَّحَارِيبَ وَتَمَاثِيلَ وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ وَقُدُورٍ رَّاسِيَاتٍ ۚ اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاوُودَ شُكْرًا ۚ وَقَلِيلٌ مِّنْ

    ﴾عِبَادِيَ الشَّكُورُ ﴿١٣

    They made for him (Prophet Daud) what he willed of elevated chambers, statues, bowls like reservoirs, and stationary kettles. [We said], “Work, O family of Daud, in gratitude.” And few of My servants are grateful. (13)
    Surah Saba, 34:13

    I was in Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah between 1989-2000 when I first learned this verse. It has a powerful impact on me. It teaches me that though Allah s.w.t. has so many servants, more than billions, or even trillions of us, only FEW of us are truly grateful.

    Since then, I started asking why. Why is it there are so many of us but only few of us are grateful? When I got the answer, which is after years of pondering on the verse, the answer has been in the verse itself all along. Most people are grateful, however their gratefulness are limited only to their words. To be truly grateful, we need to be grateful with our actions as well as our words. We need to FEEL grateful too.

    Words of gratefulness, Actions of gratefulness and Feeling of gratefulness when combined increase the positivity in us because it enhances our connection with the One we are grateful to.

    Today try this, think of something you are very grateful for, or a person you are grateful to, write a short letter of how grateful you are to this person or for having this thing and read it to the person. By doing this you are doing a grateful action, saying grateful words and feeling truly grateful.

    May Allah bless us to be among those who are grateful and increase our positivity!

    Have wonderful day filled with positivity and gratefulness!

    To subscribe to this daily positivity tips from a verse from Al-Quran,
    send a whatsapp to: +65 9226 0967

    with the message:
    “Yes! Yes! Yes! I want to be positive!”

  • Let’s Take A New Picture

     

     
    Tip of the day on Being More Positive with a verse from Al-Quran:

    Day 9: Let’s Take A New Picture

    Allah s.w.t. says in Surah Al-Nasr, verse 1:

    ﴾إِذَا جَاءَ نَصْرُ اللَّـهِ وَالْفَتْحُ ﴿١

    When the victory of Allah has come and the conquest, (1)
    Surah An-Nasr, 110:1

    Most of us, if not all, have memorize the Surah An-Nasr, and we often read it in our prayers. Unfortunately the reason we read it often is because the surah is short, only 3 short verses, thus we can complete our prayer faster.

    But let me introduce to you something about surah An-Nasr and what make it so special that you may already know. To me, Surah An-Nasr represents VISION, a PICTURE OF THE FUTURE. The surah was sent down to Rasulullah s.a.w. to uplift his spirit, that the future is bigger, better and happier than the present. This surah is then full of positive energy. Everyone will experience a more positive energy when given a more positive vision.

    So the formula for more positive energy is E = V. Energy is equals to Vision. If you want more positive energy get a more positive vision.

    Let me tell you something about myself. Since I was a kid, I love looking at the sky, it makes me breathe better, it clarifies my thoughts and it makes me feel happier. As a result I experience a better day when I look at the sky. As I grow older I learn to picture positive picture while looking at the sky. While looking at the sky I picture happy people that I know and love, then I put myself in that picture and i TAKE THE PICTURE. I put the picture in my heart and I start my work knowing that I am working for these people that I know, love and care about.

    Today let’s look at the sky and take a picture of a better future for ourselves and the people around us. And while we are at it why not read the entire Surah An-Nasr and try to have a better understanding the next time we read it in our solah.

    Today take an awesome picture and
    Have a brighter, positive day!

    To subscribe to this daily positivity tips from a verse from Al-Quran,
    send a whatsapp to: +65 9226 0967

    with the message:
    “Yes! Yes! Yes! I want to be positive!”

  • Smell The Roses

     

     
    Tip of the day on Being More Positive with a verse from Al-Quran:

    Day 8: Smell the roses

    Allah s.w.t. says in Surah Al-An’am, verse 99:

    وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَخْرَجْنَا بِهِ نَبَاتَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ فَأَخْرَجْنَا مِنْهُ خَضِرًا نُّخْرِجُ مِنْهُ حَبًّا مُّتَرَاكِبًا وَمِنَ النَّخْلِ مِن طَلْعِهَا قِنْوَانٌ دَانِيَةٌ وَجَنَّاتٍ مِّنْ أَعْنَابٍ وَالزَّيْتُونَ وَالرُّمَّانَ مُشْتَبِهًا وَغَيْرَ مُتَشَابِهٍ ۗ انظُرُوا إِلَىٰ ثَمَرِهِ إِذَا أَثْمَرَ وَيَنْعِهِ ۚ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكُمْ لَآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ ﴿٩٩

     

    And it is He who sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby the growth of all things. We produce from it greenery from which We produce grains arranged in layers. And from the palm trees – of its emerging fruit are clusters hanging low. And [We produce] gardens of grapevines and olives and pomegranates, similar yet varied. Look at [each of] its fruit when it yields and [at] its ripening. Indeed in that are signs for a people who believe. (99)

    There is a very strong connection between nature and spirituality. The sounds, the sights and the smell enhance our spirituality and improves our positivity. When we observe nature, we observe the greatness of Allah that is reflected from His creations. And when we are connected to that greatness we get connected to Allah s.w.t.

    It is important for us to spend some time in nature. It feeds our spirituality with positivity. And when we feed ourselves with positivity our spirituality become stronger and will have more chance to win the battle between positivity and negativity.

    I recently read a book that shares that Barbara Fredrickson, author of Positivity; research shows that spending time in nature boosts your positivity, especially when the weather is good. Anyone who has been to the beach, taken a walk through a forest, or spent time fishing on a lake knows how good it feels to be immersed in nature.

    Today, take the time to smell the roses, or any other flowers, spend some time in nature, even for a short while at a nearby park, take your lunch break there. If you have the time ride you bike to the beach today or during the weekends. Or Take your kids hiking, or exercise with a friend in a park. Connect with nature and connect often.

    The most easiest way to connect with nature is that when you take wudhu’ to pray do not open the tap to the maximum try to use less water and take your time to enjoy the feeling of water touching your skin when you take wudhu’. InsyaAllah you feel the connection with nature and you will the connection with Allah as you feel blessed to be able to enjoy the positivity.

    Today look at the sky, feel the water, smell the roses be connected with nature and The Creator and feel the positivity flowing through you.

    Have a more positive day!

    To subscribe to this daily positivity tips from a verse from Al-Quran,
    send a whatsapp to: +65 9226 0967
    with the message:
    “Yes! Yes! Yes! I want to be positive!”

  • Share The Gift Of Kindness

     

     
    Tip of the day on Being More Positive with a verse form Al-Quran:

    Day 7: Share The Gift Of Kindness

    Allah s.w.t. says in Surah Al-i-Imran, verse 92:

    ﴾لَن تَنَالُوا الْبِرَّ حَتَّىٰ تُنفِقُوا مِمَّا تُحِبُّونَ ۚ وَمَا تُنفِقُوا مِن شَيْءٍ فَإِنَّ اللَّـهَ بِهِ عَلِيمٌ ﴿٩٢

    Never will you attain the good [reward] until you spend [in the way of Allah] from that which you love. And whatever you spend – indeed, Allah is Knowing of it. (92)

    We all heard the phrase that says: “What goes around comes around.”

    If we want positivity we need to give away positivity. If we want to receive goodness we must give others goodness. When we are kind to others, life is kind to us.

    Rasulullah s.a.w. in many hadiths taught us to be good and kind to others, because this help spread positivity. And everybody needs positivity.

    Spreading positivity is not limited to giving money or material things. Spreading positivity is also by teaching something beneficial, sharing knowledge, smile, helping others and so many other acts of kindness

    The moment we choose to live life with positivity we must know that there are so many options available when it comes to choosing a positive act of kindness we can do.

    The verse above teaches us the condition of being positive. True positivity (good reward) will only be attain once we give away (or spend away) what we love the most. In a hadith, Rasulullah s.a.w. taught us that part of faith is love to see others receive what we love to receive for ourselves. And we can see that the companions are excellent in applying this in their life.

    Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of The How Of Happiness, has been researching different techniques and strategies to increase happiness. Not surprisingly, one of the successful happiness boosters is performing acts of kindness, such as volunteering for a charity, opening the door for someone, feeding the homeless, or taking your elderly neighbor grocery shopping. Lyubomirsky has found that by engaging in five acts of kindness in a single day (the impact is more powerful if performed in one day rather than spreading five acts over five days) participants in her studies experience a measurable boost in happiness.

    Make today day of kindness and engage in five acts of kindness. Some acts your will be able schedule and plan while other acts can be more spontaneous. The key is to perform five acts in one day.

    Today make a list of five acts of kindness you can do in one day!

    Have a more positive day filled with kindness!

    To subscribe to this daily positivity tips from a verse from Al-Quran, send a whatsapp to: +65 9226 0967
    with the message:
    “Yes! Yes! Yes! I want to be positive!”