New Year, New Beginning...It Has a Kind of Ring to it

Let me do this before January ends...

So, back in the village for another year of work, another year of working at being the difference we want to see in the world, another chance to make our mark. Welcome to another year of becoming a better person, firstly to myself, and then to everyone else, because heaven knows, there are so many things about me that need improvement.

First; new beginning - I aim to keep this blog updated as often as possible, by posting at least once a month.

Secondly, back to making that change. How do we start? The 1 thing everyone does, but no one really believes in – New Year’s Resolutions.

Yes, it’s true, NYR’s are very difficult to stick to, but if you strategise around them, they may become an integral part of your daily life. And, reality check, we all have flaws that people won’t tell us about, but would rather talk about behind our backs, flaws well worth working on.

In this post, I am going to share my 14 resolutions. But first, here’s 3 ways I plan to keep to them...

1.  Keeping ‘em small: These are 14 small changes to my daily routine, so I set the bar really low, in terms of intensity, for what I want to achieve. This way, if I feel like doing more, I may, but I will push myself to do the bare minimum. Also, I won’t feel as though my whole lifestyle has suddenly changed. These are resolutions, not revolutions.
2. Accountability: Putting these resolutions on this post forms part of this one. The more people know about my resolutions, the guiltier I will feel if I don’t see them through.
3. Reminders: (My favourite part) These resolutions are up on a chart against my wall, staring me in the face every day. The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is reported to have said that “a reminder is a benefit for a believer”. (I’m kinda religious like that)

In addition, (another part of my religiousness showing) Islamic scholars agree that more benefit is yielded from performing a small deed regularly as opposed to a big deed once.

So, categorically, here are my NYR’s.

Abdulmugheeth’s 2012 New Year’s Resolutions

Themes: Purity, Balance, Temperance

Quoted Slogans:“To know and not to do is not to know at all” – Tariq Samodien

                         “Be the change” Mahatmah Mohandas K. Ghandi

                         “Improve or die trying” – Abdulmugheeth Petersen and Roger Foster

Resolutions:

The Physical Dimension

1. Perform a minimum of 15 minutes of Cardio training daily, in the form of either running, walking, skipping, cycling, swimming, etc.
2. Perform a minimum of 15 minutes of weight training daily, in the form of either body weight or dead weight.

The Spiritual Dimension

     3.  Read at least 5 verses of a different Qur’anic Surah (chapter) daily in Arabic and English.

           4.  Read 1 Hadeeth (Prophetic Narration) on Monday and Thursday respectively.

           5.  Meditate on 5 minutes of Thikr (remembrance of the Almighty) daily.

           6.  Perform every Salaah (prayer) on time.

           7.  Make Istigfaar (repentance) often.

The Mental Dimension

8.      

           8.  Read 1 chapter of any book, novel or any poem per day.

           9.  Learn at least 1 new word in a different language daily.

          10.  Watch movies on only 1 day of the week.

Purge

          

          11.  Stop using the word ‘sh*t’ or any other vulgar language.

          12.  Decrease relationships with negative influences.

          13.  Strengthen relations with positive influences.

          14.  Steer clear of The Dark Side.