"Take advantage of five things before five others happen: your youth before you grow old; your health before you fall sick; your money before you become poor; your leisure before you become busy; and your life before you die." - The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said this according to Amr ibn Maymun as recorded by Tirmidhi.

Umar Ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "Hold yourself accountable before you are held accountable and weigh your deeds before they are weighed for you."

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It's time to set our sights on planning again. 

This is a sample self-evaluation form you can use to assess your present state in different aspects of life and how you can improve on the good.

 

LEARNING ASSESSMENT

• Are you satisfied with your level of education?
• Are you satisfied with your children’s level of education?
• If you’re a student, are you satisfied with your level of commitment to your studies?
• Do you go above and beyond your school education to enhance your knowledge (i.e online courses, Coursera, Khan
• Academy, edx, etc.)?
• Do you know enough about the system and processes of our government?

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR LEARNING HERE:

 

FAMILY ASSESSMENT

• Does your family eat dinner, discuss topics, and/or enjoy entertainment together?
• Do you and your family pray together?
• How much time per week do you spend for quality conversation within the family?
• Do you keep in regular contact with relatives?

WRITE DOWN FAMILY PLANS HERE FOR NEXT YEAR BUT FINALIZE IT AFTER CONSULTING THEM:

 

MONEY

• Are you happy with how you earn and spend your money?
• Have you thought about how can you earn more and spend more for good causes?
• Do you make a budget?

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET IDEAS TO BE FINALIZED IN FAMILY SHURA:

 

CAREER

• Are you satisfied with your career?
• Do you have a skill that you do not put to use in your current job?
• Have you learned any new skills that will help you move up the ladder in your profession?

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR CAREER ADVANCEMENT:

 

HOBBIES

• What hobbies do you enjoy? Hint: Surfing online & Watching TV is not hobbies!
• Have you taught your hobbies to your family and/or friends?

WRITE DOWN WHAT HABITS YOU WOULD LIKE TO DROP AND ADOPT NEXT YEAR:

 

 

TIME

• Are you satisfied with how you spend your free time?
• Are you addicted to any TV programs? Social media?
• Do you spend appropriate amount of time with your immediate family?
• Do you volunteer your time for masjid, Muslim organizations and other civic organizations in your broader community?

WRITE DOWN YOUR TIME MANAGEMENT IDEAS FOR NEXT YEAR:

 

 

WRITE ANY OTHER ITEMS YOU LIKE TO PLAN FOR NEXT YEAR FOR THE GOOD OF THIS WORLD:

 

CONNECTING WITH GOD: PRAYERS

• Do you pray all your obligatory Salats on time?
• Do you pray Friday prayer in congregation?
• Do you pray at home together with your family?
• Do you regularly remind your family to pray, and pray on time?

WRITE NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR IMPROVEMENT:

 

 

LISTENING TO GOD: QURAN

• Do you read a few verses of Quran with translation daily?
• Do you revise your memorized portions of the Quran on a regular basis?
• Do you understand what you recite in Salat?
• Have you recommended/invited anybody to read the Quran (Muslims or otherwise)?

WRITE NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR IMPROVEMENT:

 

 

FASTING

• Do you fast the whole month of Ramadan?
• Have you made up any fasts you missed in Ramadan?
• Do you encourage relatives and friends fast in Ramadan?
• Do you fast other days besides in Ramadan?

WRITE NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR IMPROVEMENT:

 

 

ZAKAT

• Do you properly calculate and distribute Zakat?
• Do you give above and beyond your Zakat obligation?
• Do you distribute your Zakat/Sadaqa in different categories i.e. disaster relief organizations, orphanages, education, Dawa, empowerment, etc.
• Have you encouraged relatives and friends to fulfill their Zakat obligations?

WRITE NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR IMPROVEMENT:

 

 

HAJJ

• Have you performed your Hajj?
• If not, have you started saving and learning about it?

PLAN FOR NEXT YEAR:

 

 

ARE YOU A GOOD NEIGHBOR

• How many of your neighbors do you know, and how often do you interact with them?
• Have you visited a nursing home?
• Are you a part of any neighborhood coalition or alliance?
• Have you contributed to a cause other than Muslim causes?
• Do you make Dua for your neighbors?
• Do you know what is said in Quran about neighbors and their rights?

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR BECOMING A BETTER NEIGHBOR:

 

 

ARE YOU A GOOD CITIZEN

• Did you provide positive or negative feedback to any media during the last one month?
• Did you write to or meet any elected official during the last year?
• Have you called any elected official for any cause?
• How much time did you volunteer during the last election?

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR BECOMING A BETTER CITIZEN:

 

 

WHO DID YOU VOLUNTEER FOR

• What causes do you volunteer your time for?
• In the broader community (food pantry, library, PTA, interfaith, outreach, Black Lives Matter etc.)
• In the Muslim community (Masjid, Dawa, interfaith etc.)

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR VOLUNTEER WORK:

 

 

CONTRIBUTING TIME AND MONEY FOR ISLAM

Please consider planning your time and money allocation for 2017 based on the chart below which takes into consideration the challenges the Muslim community is facing.

WRITE DOWN YOUR NEXT YEAR'S PLANS FOR YOUR TIME & MONEY: