Before You Begin Watching The Training, We Recommend Reading The Short Introductory Guide Below

Asalaamu Alaikum and welcome to this 3-part video training & introductory guide on how Muslim entrepreneurs and businesses can thrive during COVID-19 without losing their legacy.

The first thing we’d like to mention is that this 3-Part Video Training for which you've signed up is not only for you if you already have an existing business; rather this is for you even if you don't have a business.

In the video training you will learn how you can potentially start your own business and earn a halal income from home, which is of vital importance in the situation that we are in today. 

We have recently seen the outburst and and global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as a result many people (perhaps including yourself) have been impacted financially because they have not been able to go to work or their pay and/or hours have been cut. Or for those who are business owners and entrepreneurs, their business has declined.

And if that is your only means of income which has now stopped or declined suddenly and unexpectedly due to the current pandemic, then right now you are likely looking for other sources of income that are both viable and permissible. 

In the video training, we are going to show you how to do that, whether you’ve never done a business or if you’ve tried but failed in the past.

It will give you a few simple tips on how to get started. It’s not going to give you everything that you need in-depth on how to go about starting and building a business, but it’ll be a good first step so you can get your feet wet. It will give you some information that perhaps you weren’t aware of before as well as some ideas and food for thought.

That is the purpose of the video training - it’s meant to be a very preliminary, basic guide to get you started. But of course, there’s a lot more that comes after that. 

The video training will be especially useful for you if you have an offline, physical space or retail business, an events-based business or any business which entails person to person interaction on the ground. 

You will learn how you can convert your in person business which has likely declined recently into an online environment...not just for the time being but you can maintain an online presence even after this pandemic subsides.

Hence, whether you have an in-person business or an existing online business i.e. service-based, digital product based, e-commerce or physical product based, this is an opportunity for you to diversify your business and add different streams of income, already doing what you’re doing.

But you can package/offer your products and services in a different way that will not only help you increase your reach and serve more people in a greater variety of ways, but it will also help you make more income for your business, diversify your product suite, increase your customer lifetime value, etc. 

Having said that, let’s get right into this...

Master Your Mindset

The first thing that we need to discuss to preface this entire conversation is: mindset. 

Mindset is so crucial and it all begins with mindset. If you don't have the proper mindset in this current situation and in building a business and as you read this guide, then you will NOT have a good chance of succeeding.

But if you learn and begin with the correct mindset, then Insha’Allah you will have a much better chance of succeeding. And this applies to every aspect of life: it’s 80% mindset and 20% action (based on that strong mindset).

So we will touch on a few different aspects of mindset that we feel are very important for you as a Muslim entrepreneur and business owner. 

Do Not Lose Hope & Trust and Rely on Allah More Than Ever Before

This video training is specifically for Muslim entrepreneurs and businesses. We start anything that we discuss with the mention of Allah and by reminding ourselves what our faith and Allah and His Messenger (PBUH) teach us about the matter at hand. We always start with this because we understand that the most perfect, truest and best guidance for us is that of Allah and His Messenger (PBUH).

So we have to fix our mindset and understand what we’re supposed to feel and think and how we’re supposed to react to such a situation not just as human beings, but as Muslims. Because our faith teaches us everything that we need to know about living and our existence, and sure enough regarding matters of hardship and facing challenges, and even facing a plague or epidemic - all of these things have been mentioned in the Quran and in the Seerah and the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH). And it’s up to us to go to our sources through our scholars and the people of sacred knowledge for advice and guidance on how to best deal with these matters.

It’s important to not lose hope, especially if you don't have a business or an alternative income stream, and your main (or perhaps only) means of income has declined or completely gone away. It’s a tough situation to say the least, and many people out there are struggling financially and thinking about what to do to support themselves and to make ends meet for their family.

So may Allah SWT make things easy for everyone and make ways for you to support yourself and your family. May He guide you to a permissible form of income. May He help you if you are a victim of this virus/situation in any way, whether it’s financial, healthwise or otherwise. May Allah SWT uplift and ease your suffering, your pain and your sickness, give you good health, and put Barakah in all of our lives and the work that we do. May He unite us as brothers and sisters in Islam and in humanity as we face this crisis globally. And finally may Allah SWT keep our families united and enable us to maintain our ties of kinship and keep peace within our homes. Ameen.

Having said that, the number one point regarding mindset is to not lose hope because Allah tells us never to lose hope in Him and His Mercy & Blessings, no matter what.

…And whosoever has Taqwa of Allah…He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he could never imagine. [Quran 65:2-3]

This is the time to turn to Allah and rely on Him more than ever before.

…After a difficulty, Allah will soon grant relief. [Quran 65:7]

So, verily, with every difficulty, there is relief: Verily with every difficulty there is relief. Therefore, when you are free (from your immediate task), still labor hard. And to your Lord turn (all) your attention. [Quran 94:5-7]

Allah promises us that after every difficulty is relief. We must never lose hope that our situation will improve.

Say: “My servants, you who have transgressed against yourselves, do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Truly Allah forgives all wrong actions. He is the Ever-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.” [Quran 39:53]

O my sons (said Prophet Jacob)! Go and enquire about Yusuf (Joseph) and his brother, and never give up hope of Allah’s Mercy. Certainly no one despairs of Allah’s Mercy, except the people who disbelieve. [Quran 12:87]

Losing hope in Allah’s mercy is likened to disbelieving in Allah.

Do you think that you will enter paradise without such trials as came to those who passed away before you? They experienced suffering and adversity and were so shaken in spirit that even the Prophet and the faithful who were with him cried, “When will Allah’s help come?” Ah, verily the help of Allah is near. [Quran 2:214]

The path to paradise involves trials and difficulties. But never lose hope; it is a test!

Surely there is in the person of Allah’s Messenger an excellent example for you—for every person who has hope in Allah and the hereafter and who remembers Allah, reciting His name many times. [Quran 33:21]

Hope is faith in Allah and the hereafter.

…So be not of the despairing. [Quran 15:55]

The true foundation of hope is the good that we do in this life.

God is with you and will never deprive you of your (good) deeds. [Quran 47:35]

Do not lose heart nor fall into despair! You shall triumph if you are believers. [Quran 3:139]

True success comes to those who believe.

Their limbs do forsake their beds of sleep, the while they call on their Lord, in Fear and Hope: and they spend (in charity) out of the sustenance which We have bestowed on them. [Quran 32:16]

The believer calls on Allah in fear and hope: fear of His displeasure, and hope in His mercy and approval of us.

The Prophet (PBUH) said: Allah created mercy in one hundred parts and sent down to earth only one part. Because of this one part, there is mutual love amongst creation, so much so that an animal will lift up its hoof from its young one, fearing that it might harm it. Allah has reserved the remaining ninety-nine parts of this mercy to favor His believing servants on the Day of Judgment. [Bukhari and Muslim, Book #037, Hadith #6631]

This hadith is a source of great hope in that Allah has reserved 99 out of 100 parts of mercy for the Day of Judgment. Now reflect on this: only one part of this 100 is divided among all living creatures on earth, including every single human being. Whatever mercy there is on earth, 99 times of that is with Allah. We cannot even fathom how merciful God is!

So whoever would hope for the meeting with his Lord – let him do righteous work and not associate in the worship of his Lord anyone. [Quran 18:110] 

Let us be hopeful about meeting our Lord, and worship and trust in Him alone.

...Perhaps you dislike something while it is actually good for you, and perhaps you love something while it is actually bad for you. And Allah Knows whereas you do not know. [2:216]

Not only is there a reason for everything, there is a good reason for everything. Allah only wants good for us. Even in the things that are seemingly bad, there is much good.

We have seen even in this terrible situation with the many struggles and challenges that have arisen, there have been good and positive aspects as well.

Perhaps you’re able to spend more time with family. Perhaps you are not distracted as much by leisure activities such as watching sports and hence you have more time to be productive. Perhaps this is an opportunity for you to remember and worship Allah more than you were before. These are only a few of the many positive aspects that we can extract from the situation, even if they may not be very obvious or apparent.

This is also a time to turn to Allah and rely on Him more than ever before. Sometimes we may think that because we have a job, a business, a consistent income or paycheck, investments, etc. - we have one or more different things that are taking care of us financially, and perhaps we forget that the One who is truly providing for us is Allah. Allah is the One that gave you that job and that opportunity, and this is a reminder that just like Allah gives us, Allah can also take things away, whatever the wisdom behind that may be. We should never think of Allah in a negative manner, thinking things like “why is Allah doing this to me?’ Rather we always look at the positive, remain faithful and optimistic and consider Allah in the best way because Allah says in a Hadith Qudsi, “I am as my servant sees Me.” So if we see Allah in a positive light, as our Caretaker and our Most Merciful Master then Insha’Allah He will bestow His mercy upon us.

So this is a reminder that just as Allah took care of you; He gave you those opportunities and sustained you financially for years and years, and naturally one may think that nothing can stand in the way of this sustenance... but then all of this happened unexpectedly. So let us ponder and reflect upon the fact that Allah is the One in control and we need to turn to Him and rely on Him to take care of ourselves and our families. And you have to fully trust that Allah will make a way for you regardless of how difficult of a situation you may be in currently.

So that was the preface to the 3-part video training that you are going to delve into.

Now that you (Insha'Allah) have the right mindset, 80% of the job is done. Now, let's go through the remaining 20%.

You will discover how you can thrive online, reach more people, and leave a greater legacy than you could have ever imagined,