What is your current trajectory? #AtomicHabits

 

“Who you are TODAY is a result of your daily habits”.

Imagine reading this quote 30 days, or 1 year from now.

Let that sink in.

In his excellent book, “Atomic Habits”, author James Clear makes a very interesting point: 

“It doesn’t matter how successful or unsuccessful you are right now. What matters is whether your habits are putting you on the path toward success. You should be far more concerned with your current trajectory than with your current results.”

What matters isn’t the RESULTS – what we have achieved, or what have are YET to achieve – but rather, it’s in the EFFORTS and decisions we make (or FAIL to make) in the present moment, that accumulates over time. 

It’s interesting when we reflect these words in the context of the following hadith of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. He ﷺ was asked, “who are the best of people?”

The Prophet ﷺ said, “He who lives a long life, and deeds are good.”

But wait... there’s more! 

He ﷺ was then asked, “who are the WORST?”

He ﷺ said, “he whose life is long, but his deeds are evil” (At-Tirmidzi)

Long life – in and of itself – isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing. It’s what you DO with that time that Allah gives you: that’s what truly matters.

Food for thought for us Malays who love wishing “semoga panjang umur” 😉

When we reflect back on our deeds: how we were last month, last year: How is your trajectory in your deeds: In learning? Serving family members? Personal health, such as eating & exercise? Your righteous deeds, such as prayers, Qur’an, Dzikir solah?

Are we on the path of improvement, stagnation or going downhill?

“Making a choice that is 1 percent better or 1 percent worse seems insignificant in the moment, but over the span of moments that make up a lifetime these choices determine the difference between who you are and who you could be. Success is the product of daily habits—not once-in-a-lifetime transformations.

It is so easy to overestimate the importance of one defining moment and underestimate the value of making small improvements on a daily basis. Too often, we convince ourselves that massive success requires massive action.”

#TheBarakahEffect