Roqaya Al Gassra
Don’t Quit
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–
You may succeed with another blow.
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor’s cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.
- Author unknown
My entire life it seems has been framed by this poem, as I am typing this post I just remembered one of the first places I’d read it was in my childhood living room over two decades ago! I do believe my mother was my first self-help guru! MashaAllah, I know she has always been a source of inspiration.
So what’s the big deal behind this not quitting thing anyway? Why is it so important? It’s all about commitment. Commitment is what’s going to keep you at it when, not if the going gets tough. Commitment is… knowing that your goal or desired result is worth the effort and being faithful enough to dedicate yourself to seeing it through.
As you are coming to know, Teacher Tamara loves a good equation! (I really enjoyed algebra in school) so here is our commitment breakdown.
Knowledge+Effort+Faith=Commitment.
To really get a good understanding of what we are talking about here we need to clarify our own working definition of each term.
1. Knowledge of what you want-ex. Your goal
2. Exerting the required effort to reach completion- ex. Your actions
3. Being faithful believing that your goal will be achieved- ex. Seeing yourself reaching your goal
~Working it out ~Going the extra mile ~Raising the bar ~Pushing the limits ~Reaching for the stars
BEING COMMITTED to your goal is essential to achieve success in any endeavor. Like the athletes who push father and strive harder to do their personal best in the Olympics, we are our own measuring stick. We can only truly compete and win against ourselves (jihad an nafs–the struggle of the self). True struggle and true success reside in the same place – inside ourselves.
What are your thoughts on commitment and success?
- Roqaya Al-Gassra
A picture is worth a thousand words…
Commit to a lifetime of learning!
Teacher~Tamara
© 2009 Teacher~Tamara ™. All rights reserved.
teachertamara
“Commitment is what’s going to keep you at it when, not if the going gets tough. Commitment is… knowing that your goal or desired result is worth the effort and being faithful enough to dedicate yourself to seeing it through.”
Ya Ustatha Tamara…I really, really like this definition. For myself, I add the ending “no matter how you feel.”
I find that keeping babysteps in mind helps too. Looking at a steep slope and feeling waning interest, a person might say forget it. But if that same person were to keep in mind that reaching the top is worth the effort and dedicates herself to the part just ahead of her, and then repeats that over and over, she will be at the top before she knows it.
Masha Allah Laquwatta illa billah. Teacher Tamara I am inspired. Can you bottle it so i can drink a cup every morning? (:
As salaamu alaikum ,
Coach Tamara have you had experiences where you had to make changes in your life, in your habits to accomplish your goals? If so can you please share with us how you were able to make those changes?
Sis HibahMac totally agree with you about the baby steps. One good thing about breaking a large goal into smaller steps is that sense of accomplishment that comes from completing motivates you to move on and do more.
Sis Baheejah
that’s cute! Sign up for SisterShine Lifecoaching and InshaAllah what you will get will be like an espresso shot of this!
Sis Umm Abdul-Aziz one of the areas I have struggled with is staying up late at night. I have always been a night person but having kids and working this became a major struggle even to the point where it was becoming detrimental to my health. What helped me to overcome this was to look into why I stayed up late and to see what benefit I was getting from this. When I looked deeper I realized that I liked the quiet solitude and reflection that I was able to do at this time. By changing my bedtime habits and going to bed earlier usually after 9 I can sleep well and get full rest and then wake up about 2-3 hours before everyone else. I find that I can get lots done in that quiet time.
As-salaamu `alaykum,
I’m looking for a good Muslim male Psychologist or counseller who is based in or around London. Any ideas on that?
Or if I can’t find a Muslim do you think its worth going for non-Muslim. Its for a brother who is depressed.
I appeciate your help.
JazaakAllaah
Wa laykum a salam M,
If the brother is severely depressed my best advice would be to get him some help initially. A doctor’s opinion would be best. I’m not a doctor nor am I familiar with counselors in the London area.
I’d like to take this opportunity to clarify a major point about life coaching: Life coaching is NOT therapy. People can be depressed and use some life coaching techniques to move forward but if it is a severe form of depression, medication sometimes is needed.
Life coaches CAN help a person see or think about new ways to approach a problem and look inside themselves for the solution.
InshaAllah I wish the brother all the best in his recovery, May Allah give him health and provide him relief from his current trial.
T~T