Life is a learning process, not a competition

 "Traditional competition forces us to take on an attitude of winning. A Worthy Rival inspires us to take on an attitude of improvement. The former focuses our attention on the outcome, the latter focuses our attention on process. That simple shift in perspective immediately changes how we see our own businesses. It is the focus on process and constant improvement that helps reveal new skills and boosts resilience." - Simon Sinek

Personally I relate business/leadership strongly with parenthood, as both deal with the responsibility of ensuring welfare to those in our care. And thus its not about winning parenthood (or looking good on social media), its about overall progression. 

Cause sometimes, it may look like I'm barely surviving at a particular moment, and then thriving the next, and boy do my days resemble that of a flunctuating economic graph - that is if you measure each line strictly on the graph. But if you are to zoom out and observe, there's overall progression.

So instead of trying  to micromanage everything and asking myself:  

"Did I follow the stratergies I planned out well?"

"Did I lose it and screamed at the kids with rage and emotions?"

"Did they have too much screentime?"

"Were the kids well-behaved?"

"Did I manage to get my check-list of the day done?"

Ultimately, the questions I should be asking are:

"Hows my spiritual connection with Jalla Ula, and thus with Nabiyallah solawatullah?"

"How am I taking care of myself?"

"Hows my relationship with my kids?"

"Hows my relationship with my husband?"

"Hows my relationship with my parents and in-laws?"

"Hows my relationship with people I interact with today?"

See I realize there are people Ive built trust over the years that when I do face conflicts with these people, be it my own kids, or my husband, or my parents, we are quick to resolve them. The trust and bond we have for each other ensure that. And thats the beauty of having strong relationships. It creates support; it creates a safe space for us to learn from our mistakes, without judgement and without bias. And that stimulates growth. 

Honestly for now, I learnt it most from my kids. Kids, they have zero judgement and are naturally soo forgiving, which at times make them the better examples or role models to us adults. 

These are the kind of people that matter. And ofcourse for us muslims, the one perfect human who has totally no bias and no judgement is none other than our Rasulullah sollallahu alaih. I need to remember to always strive towards a stronger connection with our Nabi sollallahu alaih, for only he can show me how best to deeply connect with others.

May we be among those who walk on this earth constantly eager to learn and grow, and thus always strive towards building connections.