VisionWeavers with Dr. Tawfique Chowdhury
Ultimate Vision - Toronto
[Read Time >> 5 minutes]
Note: This is my summarized notes from a workshop by Dr. Tawfique Chowdhury with VisionWeavers. Any inaccuracy and lack of depth in explanation is from me, it was a great workshop.
This event was only 2 hrs, more info on the 3 day seminar below.
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Why bother with goals?
It’s absolutely essential to pursue goals consciously and appropriately; because otherwise 2 problems can arise
1 – Romanticizing about goals – You know those da’wah goals that is so ‘nice’ to talk about…but has no substance or real meaning; like “I will bring khilafah back” or “I’m going to study Islam…going to, not yet. But when I do I will…” and of course “”My goal is to change the ummah.”
2 – Life regains the attention – there’s a strong motivation to do something, but then it dies down. Then comes another one – that person is directionless
It’s a terrible thing to see, but have no vision”
Rocking Horse
Even when going after goals and working really hard at it, it may just be the “rocking horse” approach.
Especially in da’wah, sometimes the goal is “lets just do something…something ya’nee”. Of course it’s good and their reward is with Allah, however it is just movement without significant progress.
Why Visions
Clear Focus, knowing it’s this way and not that way. That clear focus on a powerful vision will energizes people.
Example: Shaykh Tawfique’s goal when starting AlKauthar Institute was: launch, then reach 5 continents in 2 years. Alhamdulillah that happened.
What do visions Do?
Vision = the ability to see the invisible
“Vision guides to today towards what you see tomorrow”
The ability to close your eyes and see the world after you’ve passed away, how your family remembers you, the legacy you’ve left behind…Now is the time to get clarity on how your family will be, what kind of house do you want to live in, what you want to pursue in life. And a good place to start as well is to write what you don’t want and see what options are left.
The Planning Myths
Let’s plan when we get there or it takes too long so let’s just start without it.
Example - if you’re travelling and plan on crossing a river by the bridge, what will you do when there are 4 options. 3 of them are broken, being repaired, while only 1 is open…the trial-n-error method wastes more time than planning ahead.
“Don’t confuse Distance with Displacement”
– this is huge, read it again.
[Note: There were some excellent images to illustrate this] Just because there’s a lot of movement doesn’t mean there’s progress. Like the people crossing a bridge may have driven 10 KM to check each bridge, instead of thinking ahead and only driving 2 KM to cross the river.
9 Parts of a Vision: (can’t get into detail, but here’s the list)
- Attainability
- Lucidity
- Concreteness
- Clarity
- Complexity
- Scale
- Nobility
- Loftiness
- Correctness
The big question: WHY
It’s critical to have the why before the what…because the why will guide you to the where. Example: Travelling – Why can be (i) Vacation (ii) Business (ii) Alone time – Each one leads to a different destination
Jannah (Paradise) is a “why” and not a “where” because it’s the reason why we do things. And when there’s a weak “why” there won’t be any perseverance towards reaching the goal.
“If the why is strong, the what is easy”
What vision will you have and what legacy will you leave behind?
Other topics:
- Linear vs. Exponential growth
- Vision + Roles + Sub-roles
- Balance point with each sub-role
If you’re not driven towards your vision, you haven’t found the right vision
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YOUR TURN:
This wasn’t light information, so what did you get out of it? Lemme know below
If you did benefit, but don’t want to comment…just write “More” below and I’ll get that your way. InshaAllah.