Self-Development and Living Day by Day: Getting Today Right

When we develop ourselves with God-inspired goals, we have long-term, medium-term, and short-term goals, so we know what we are doing on a daily basis. We have a daily routine based on these goals for the present, and our day is structured. As we take more and more responsibility for our natural, incremental, balanced growth, we increase our daily tasks, which are based on our God-inspired goals, in both quantity and quality.

What if the secret of long-term success is simply getting one day right?

Breaking Development Down to One Day

We break our development down to just one day, and we live that day with full presence and mindfulness. All we need to do is get this one day right, and we are all set for success. If we can do this every day, we create a silent avalanche for success. Just as an avalanche begins with falling snow, one well-lived day after another adds up to something far larger than any of them.

Guarding This One Day

It is important to guard this one day. This one day is all we have. The Prophet (SAW) advised: "When you reach the evening, do not wait for the morning, and when you reach the morning, do not wait for the evening" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6416). He also said that whoever wakes up safe in his body, secure among his people, and with his food for the day, it is as if the whole world has been gathered for him (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2346).

Neither Sad About the Past nor Anxious About the Future

We do not have to be sad about the past, nor anxious about the future. The past has gone, and we cannot do anything about it, except to learn from it and to seek forgiveness from a Lord who forgives all mistakes. The Prophet (SAW) said that all the children of Adam make mistakes, and the best of those who make mistakes are those who repent (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2499).

The future has not come yet, so we cannot lose sleep over it. We cannot even know that we will reach it: "No soul knows what it will earn tomorrow, and no soul knows in what land it will die" (Qur'an 31:34). This requires trust in Allah (Tawakkul) that whatever He does will be the best for us when it does happen. Allah tells us that whoever relies on Him, He is sufficient for them (Qur'an 65:3). Meanwhile, we focus on living this day the best we can, which is already planned to take care of our short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals. The Prophet (SAW) used to seek refuge in Allah from worry and grief (Sahih al-Bukhari 6369), the two burdens of the future and the past.

Living Today Fully

Let no influence stop us from living today fully, with full focus and motivation to get it right. Let nobody weigh us down over our past by reminding us of our mistakes. Let nobody induce undue anxiety about the future, as it is in the hands of our Creator, who will execute it to be the best for us.

With this knowledge, we live today fully, and we do this every day to keep growing and developing naturally.