The Prophetic Blueprint For Leadership

0:00 [SPEAKER_00]: He left this world over 1,400 years ago, and yet he's still in a way the most alive leader in the world. [SPEAKER_00]: His legacy shows up in every believer. [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet Sallallahu alaihi sallam, a lot describes him as the default role model. [SPEAKER_00]: So if you come across a leadership book and it references different people from different cultures and religions, and it does not include Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu alaihi sallam, then the book is lacking.

0:22 [SPEAKER_00]: If you find a leadership training program and it's missing the Prophet ﷺ as an example of ultimate leadership as a greatest leader in history, according to even some non-Muslims, then it's laki. [SPEAKER_00]: One of the ways in which the leadership of the Prophet ﷺ is explored is that someone will go through the siddha'a extract a few moments and say this is the blueprint to leadership.

0:47 [SPEAKER_00]: But in reality, the more you study the Siddha and the more you study leadership as well, the more you see that it would take hundreds of hours to extract so many gems and so many examples. [SPEAKER_00]: So many strategies and so many different theories, modern-day theories of leadership infused in one person.

1:04 [SPEAKER_00]: Sallallahu alaihi wa sallamu alaihi wa sallam. [SPEAKER_00]: And there are many different approaches, no doubt, and in fact even here in our community, we had the mech can see it on a weekly basis for over a year. [SPEAKER_00]: There's so many different ways to approach this. [SPEAKER_00]: But it's important to begin with the foundation that Allah SWT tells us that the Prophet Sallallahu alaikum alaihi wa-sallam is the standard.

1:23 [SPEAKER_00]: Nakhad-khan ala-khamfi Rasul ala-hi, wa-swatun Hassan. [SPEAKER_00]: There is in the messenger of Allah, a beautiful example, a role model, the standard. [SPEAKER_00]: But who is it for? [SPEAKER_00]: Liman kan a yaruj Allahah, for those who seek Allah al-Suphan at al-Ali. [SPEAKER_00]: While yalmel ahar and their pursuit is that of the afterlife, what that kan Allah al-Qatirah.

1:43 [SPEAKER_00]: And they remember Allah with much remembrance. [SPEAKER_00]: For today's hutba'r rather than explore hundreds of different approaches at a high level, I just want to give one approach. [SPEAKER_00]: that would help us all in our different stages of life in our circumstances, to see the Prophet's salalohani Selam's leadership in a way that can help us automatically assess where we are and see where we need to go.

2:07 [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet's salalohani who has said to him, you'll notice in his leadership, [SPEAKER_00]: that there were four relationships that were always perfectly balanced for axes, if you will. [SPEAKER_00]: And amongst them you have the notion of the leader with their followers, so it's downward.

2:23 [SPEAKER_00]: The second is upward, figuratively, towards the creator. [SPEAKER_00]: The third is inward, in terms of yourself, your nefs, and your soul, and the fourth is forward for those who have not yet joined your flock, for those who have not yet been born as well. [SPEAKER_00]: And when you look at all four of these, you find the Prophet ﷺ described in the last two ayat of Surat-e-Taba.

2:43 [SPEAKER_00]: Allah Subhanahu Ata'ala reminds the believers and reminds all of the umman till the end of times. [SPEAKER_00]: La Khadjaa cumura sudomin anfusikum azizun alaihim ala anitum. [SPEAKER_00]: He's affected by anything that causes you to suffer. [SPEAKER_00]: He carries the weight and the pain of his followers salalahu alaihi wa salam.

3:07 [SPEAKER_00]: So he's a genuine. [SPEAKER_00]: He cares about them. [SPEAKER_00]: Harisun alaihim concerned for your well-being, even when people are not concerned. [SPEAKER_00]: Even when a Muslim starts to disregard their al-khirah, the Prophet salalahu alaihi sin was worried about the believers. [SPEAKER_00]: Bilmutminina r-e ufrahim.

3:24 [SPEAKER_00]: Remarkably here, Allah describes Subhanahu Ata'ala, the prophet, Ali Hissalatu wa sallam with two traits, there are also related to attribute of Allah, Arawa-Uf, Arawa-Uf, Arawa-Him. [SPEAKER_00]: But Allah describes the prophet as Arawa-Ufun, Arawa-Him, tender-hearted and compassionate merciful to his followers, a mercy to the world.

3:43 [SPEAKER_00]: And of course, you have many examples, but I want you to think of your relationship with the people that you have any influence over, and it starts at home. [SPEAKER_00]: It starts with your own flock. [SPEAKER_00]: It starts with your family, your friends, your roommates. [SPEAKER_00]: It could start with the friends that are closest to.

3:59 [SPEAKER_00]: One time, there's a young companion, a bedwin companion. [SPEAKER_00]: He messed up in Salah a big time. [SPEAKER_00]: In front of the Jama'a, someone sneezed and out loud in the midst of prayer, he responded to your Hamukullah. [SPEAKER_00]: And the midst of Salah. [SPEAKER_00]: And he felt so embarrassed and perhaps after the prayer, some of the Sahaba glared at him, like, what are you doing?

4:17 [SPEAKER_00]: And they look to see how is the prophet going to correct this young man. [SPEAKER_00]: The prophet is all-hysam was so gentle and loving with him that he said, it's more like, it's all-hysam. [SPEAKER_00]: He said, Marwai to Marwali Manqablahu. [SPEAKER_00]: Waalabadahu Aksana to Alim and Min.

4:31 [SPEAKER_00]: I've never seen a teacher before or after who is better in teaching others than him. [SPEAKER_00]: And then he said, Fawallahi, Maka Harwani. [SPEAKER_00]: Waalabani. [SPEAKER_00]: Waalash at him and he never made me feel bad. [SPEAKER_00]: He never scolded me, he didn't hit me, he didn't shame me.

4:46 [SPEAKER_00]: Sometimes the only thing a child remembers from an experience that they had in life is how humiliated their parents made them feel. [SPEAKER_00]: Sometimes it's that they were publicly embarrassed. [SPEAKER_00]: And many of us have different experiences of life on both ends. [SPEAKER_00]: You may be a teacher, a manager, a volunteer, a part of an MSA.

5:05 [SPEAKER_00]: Does it matter your role? [SPEAKER_00]: And somebody messes up. [SPEAKER_00]: And how do you correct them in that moment? [SPEAKER_00]: in which you are echoing here, the humility of the Prophet ﷺ, the mercy as well to consider the feelings of the one who messed up, the one who made a mistake.

5:20 [SPEAKER_00]: That's a sign that downward, the Prophet ﷺ absolutely cared about everyone in Islam. [SPEAKER_00]: In fact, in one of the authentic Ahadith, the Prophet ﷺ mentioned that he makes dua for the Ummah in every prayer. [SPEAKER_00]: May du'at for us, salallahu alayhi wa salam, concerned for the umma, umma ti umma ti, begging Allah my umma my umma, salallahu alayhi wa salam.

5:42 [SPEAKER_00]: The second relationship is upward, figuratively, towards the creator, and one of the obvious modern diseases in Western society or any secular approach to leadership. [SPEAKER_00]: is when someone is really well-developed towards their followers, they may be charismatic and humble and kind and concerned, but they're empty in terms of the rights of Allah.

6:03 [SPEAKER_00]: They are rejecting or neglecting the rights of the one who created them. [SPEAKER_00]: In fact, one example of this is when someone reaches a position of achievement or success or completion of university degree a project that [SPEAKER_00]: and automatically they feel that the achievement is for them, that the ambition and the accomplishment landed on them.

6:25 [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet ﷺ shows us that a Muslim leader takes any opportunity in which Allah has privileged them or blessed them with something of this world even though yes you worked for it. [SPEAKER_00]: And then it's transferred upward towards Allah, Muhammad al-Tawfiqli l-Labina, that you thank Allah for it, that you become more grateful.

6:43 [SPEAKER_00]: In fact, a sign that you are passing the test of having wealth, or freedom, or privilege of any type is that you're closer to Allah. [SPEAKER_00]: It's a sign that you're passing that test because it's not an easy test when you get too comfortable. [SPEAKER_00]: Or when you start to think this is because of me.

6:59 [SPEAKER_00]: In one of the shortest passages of the entire Qur'an, [SPEAKER_00]: Allah Subhanallah ta'ala reminds us that either Farofta, thumbs up, once you've finished with this, once you've finished your task, then stand in effort. [SPEAKER_00]: Stand in exertion. [SPEAKER_00]: Wa illa Rabbiqa, Farofta, and turn your longing towards Allah Subhanallah ta'ala.

7:19 [SPEAKER_00]: In other words, the Prophet ﷺ is teaching us all the energy and achievement and accomplishment that you had in that moment. [SPEAKER_00]: Don't let it end with the worldly accomplishment. [SPEAKER_00]: Turn that into gratitude towards Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ad. [SPEAKER_00]: And the reason this is so important is because ultimately, for us as Muslims everything of this world should be directed towards Allah, should be intended for his sake.

7:42 [SPEAKER_00]: And someone may go to work 40 hours a week, 50 hours a week, with their friend, their business partner, both Muslims and one is being rewarded by Allah and the other is not, because of their intentions, because of their actions, because of their track record. [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet Aleyhisallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu alaallahu

8:18 [SPEAKER_00]: slave of Allah to refer to himself, and Allah gave the prophet this beautiful name in the Quran in the first ayah of Suratu al-Khaf, which we should recite every juma. [SPEAKER_00]: And this is an honorific title, but what's amazing about it as well is that a leader who becomes more humble, [SPEAKER_00]: Because of their worldly success, ends up being rewarded by Al-Lawso Panoatata and protected from being easily, molded, easily pushed and pressured into a different direction.

8:45 [SPEAKER_00]: And I'll give one more example of this, the Prophet ﷺ during Fatihimeqqa, the liberation of Mecca, with all that they did to the Muslims for over 15 years. [SPEAKER_00]: All the harm and the martyrdom, the people they killed and tortured and abused, he comes back. [SPEAKER_00]: and rather than holding his head up high, the Prophet was humble, his beard was almost touching the reins of the camel that he was on.

9:08 [SPEAKER_00]: Out of humility to Allah, Inna Fataqna, Laqa Fata'an Mobina reciting the saying of Allah, Subhanatana, about this very moment. [SPEAKER_00]: The one who, the leader who answers to a loss of panatari with sincerity, and they do everything for his sake. [SPEAKER_00]: No matter their position, whether as a husband, or as a coworker, or as a CEO, or in any position in politics, the one who answers upward in terms of their values doesn't buckle easily under pressure.

9:36 [SPEAKER_00]: They tend to be the people that cannot be bought by their donors. [SPEAKER_00]: They tend to not care that they're going to be hijacked by their fans. [SPEAKER_00]: They tend not to care about social and peer pressure, because they know what their values are. [SPEAKER_00]: They know what truth is, they know who matters at the end of the day.

9:52 [SPEAKER_00]: And even non-Muslims can demonstrate this at times. [SPEAKER_00]: We're seeing this in the conversations in this last week. [SPEAKER_00]: It doesn't have to be a musician or a singer or a band or a concert. [SPEAKER_00]: For people to see genocide is problematic, no matter the cost you have to speak up, you have a platform.

10:08 [SPEAKER_00]: And so many non-Muslims have done this and we ask a lot to bless them and guide them with that which is best for them and grant them the blessing of Islam as well. [SPEAKER_00]: And sometimes a Muslim in the very same test or a dictator or prime minister or a politician. [SPEAKER_00]: We'll buckle on under that pressure.

10:24 [SPEAKER_00]: We ask Allah SWT to make us from amongst those who are consistently attached to Him and to His pleasure along the army. [SPEAKER_00]: The third relationship is inward, in terms of the state of the soul. [SPEAKER_00]: And I'll give only one example. [SPEAKER_00]: In the beginning of the sida, there was a famous incident where the Prophet ﷺ was having a conversation with the political elite of Quraish.

10:47 [SPEAKER_00]: And the thought here from a strategic perspective, if you can convince the one percent that elite class, those who are coming to a heavy conversation, if you can convince them, then they will influence all of their tribes. [SPEAKER_00]: There's a very noble thing that he was doing, Salah al-Halli al-Sanip.

11:03 [SPEAKER_00]: But in the midst of the conversation, a blind companion comes up to the Prophet, Salah al-Halli al-Sanip, blind man comes up to him to ask him questions about Islam. [SPEAKER_00]: Abdullah bin Umimaqq, one of the Allah al-Halli al-Halli al-Halli. [SPEAKER_00]: One of the greatest of Sahaba.

11:17 [SPEAKER_00]: and the professor Larson and was in the middle of giving Darwin, he was very passionate about this Darwin because it could have ripple effects. [SPEAKER_00]: And he frowned, and the man didn't even see the frowned, it only alone, and he frowned and turned back, because he was interrupted, he frowned and turned back to speak to the people that he was speaking to.

11:34 [SPEAKER_00]: And shortly after this, as you know, Allah Subhanallah ta'ala revealed, a sword that is literally named with the scolding that the Prophet got from Allah Subhanallah ta'ala, even though the intention was a good intention of da'wa. [SPEAKER_00]: But the Prophet turned away, and Allah Subhanallah ta'ala says, A'aba, sa'wa, ta'wa, ta'wa, ta'wa.

11:50 [SPEAKER_00]: that he frowned and he turned away. [SPEAKER_00]: And Ja'ul Ahmad, when the blind man came to him, what ma'ayudariq al'ahallahu yazzaka? [SPEAKER_00]: And how do you know that he's not going to be purified in his soul? [SPEAKER_00]: Oh, yadak al-Fatanfahu, diqra, or reminded, so that he would benefit from the reminder.

12:05 [SPEAKER_00]: Why is this being mentioned here? [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet ﷺ, experienced something. [SPEAKER_00]: that no person who is an imposter in history can ever fake. [SPEAKER_00]: No one can do something like this. [SPEAKER_00]: No one would dare as a leader today to do something like this, reciting verses, scolding him, and Abbas has only one example.

12:25 [SPEAKER_00]: reciting verses that also threaten him, Salallahu alaihi wa salam, that warn him, that scold him. [SPEAKER_00]: Over what over a facial expression he's reciting this outlawed for the rest of his life and the entirety of the Ummah is reciting these verses until the end of times. [SPEAKER_00]: Many leaders today would rather hide their performance review, would hide their mistakes, would blame someone else fire the wrong person.

12:47 [SPEAKER_00]: Corporations constantly are burying the internal reviews, and of course, throwing people under the bus. [SPEAKER_00]: Politicians oftentimes deny or gaslight. [SPEAKER_00]: And what did he do? [SPEAKER_00]: He honored Abdelad Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al-Al- [SPEAKER_00]: even by our children, even by our co-workers, by our employees, by the people who work for your company.

13:29 [SPEAKER_00]: We have to be willing to be corrected. [SPEAKER_00]: At the end of the day, it's a reflection, a symptom of where the heart is, can this heart accept feedback? [SPEAKER_00]: We ask a lot of hospitality to grant us humility. [SPEAKER_00]: and the fourth and the last relationship here in terms of leadership.

13:43 [SPEAKER_00]: This is something you won't really find in secular leadership books as much, but it's the idea that he was looking forward often. [SPEAKER_00]: Salalahu Alaikum, he was thinking about us, and he mentioned us on many occasions, and Allah mentions us in the Quran as well in many different ways.

13:58 [SPEAKER_00]: And so one example, the Prophet Salalahu Alaikum, he was Selam. [SPEAKER_00]: He's auditing and he's training successors and he's thinking about the state of the Ummah one time they're sitting down and he says if only like I wish I could see my brothers. [SPEAKER_00]: By default, my brothers and my sisters in Islam the Sahaba looked at each other.

14:14 [SPEAKER_00]: Aren't we your brothers? [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, Rasulullah. [SPEAKER_00]: And the Prophet ﷺ said, [SPEAKER_00]: My brothers and our brothers are those who have not yet arrived. [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, they're not even born yet. [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet ﷺ is talking about us and this is the axis of the future.

14:34 [SPEAKER_00]: And he's thinking about the state of the Ummah. [SPEAKER_00]: And often times when he's praying clear, I mean, he's making to out for the ummah in his clear and repeatedly and crying. [SPEAKER_00]: And the question we should ask ourselves, way before the day of a judgment, way before the Prophet recognizes the believers from the way that they made will rule from the light that is shining from them.

14:52 [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet ﷺ is teaching us to think about our legacies. [SPEAKER_00]: Is there anyone downstream that's being affected by you? [SPEAKER_00]: Are you thinking and for many of us, if you have children, it might be just your children. [SPEAKER_00]: But is there anything beyond that? [SPEAKER_00]: Is anyone downstream in terms of your life?

15:08 [SPEAKER_00]: That's being influenced by what you're doing. [SPEAKER_00]: When we enter our graves and this life is very short, [SPEAKER_00]: We want to ensure that our understanding of influence and leadership in Amanah doesn't end at the edge of that grave. [SPEAKER_00]: It's not with the people who just prayed and left.

15:23 [SPEAKER_00]: We want to make sure that we are planting and raising and nurturing good people, that we're influencing others in a positive way. [SPEAKER_00]: It doesn't have to be drastic, and it doesn't have to be for 50 years, and it doesn't have to be one's own children. [SPEAKER_00]: We want to make sure if you have children that you're raising them with a perspective of the [SPEAKER_00]: We have to ensure that the knowledge really behind his beneficial knowledge, not useless or harmful.

15:47 [SPEAKER_00]: If the brothers can move up, just like Makhiran, as much as you can, just make space for some of the brothers in the back. [SPEAKER_00]: And lastly, the Prophet ﷺ, we recognize, he left this world over 1400 years ago. [SPEAKER_00]: And yet he's still in a way the most alive leader in the world.

16:03 [SPEAKER_00]: His legacy shows up in every believer. [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet ﷺ, [SPEAKER_00]: a lot describes him as the default role model. [SPEAKER_00]: So if you come across a leadership book and it references different people from different cultures and religions, and it does not include Prophet Muhammad ﷺ then the book is lacking.

16:21 [SPEAKER_00]: If you find a leadership training program and it's missing the Prophet ﷺ as an example of ultimate leadership as a greatest leader in history, according to even some non Muslims, then it's lacking. [SPEAKER_00]: For us, we can audit ourselves with these four relationships, one smart. [SPEAKER_00]: Does your legacy, does your life in terms of what you're doing towards anyone?

16:43 [SPEAKER_00]: You have influence over. [SPEAKER_00]: Does it affect you when they're affected? [SPEAKER_00]: Are you affected by their well-being? [SPEAKER_00]: Do you care about them as much as you care about yourself? [SPEAKER_00]: Are you moved by their suffering? [SPEAKER_00]: Number two, upward, figuratively towards the loss of Hannah to adda.

16:57 [SPEAKER_00]: that we're thinking about everything we do as being connected to a loss of Hanoatata and the ambition and the achievements are not landing on our names but rather redirected towards the one who gave us the one who sustained us. [SPEAKER_00]: Third is inward. [SPEAKER_00]: How quickly do we absorb correction and seek feedback?

17:14 [SPEAKER_00]: Not in a token type of way in many corporations but in a very sincere and humble way. [SPEAKER_00]: And lastly, forward, is there anyone downstream that's affected by the short time you have on earth? [SPEAKER_00]: Beyond one's own children, is there anything else where really considering in terms of the ripple effects on the Ummah?

17:30 [SPEAKER_00]: The Prophet ﷺ, there is no doubt whatsoever when you study. [SPEAKER_00]: leadership, even from a secular lens. [SPEAKER_00]: And then you study His Sira Ali, He's a lot to a Saddam. [SPEAKER_00]: You see, you see that He is, in fact, the default, greatest leader of all time. [SPEAKER_00]: And there are lots of Palatalla chose the final messenger Ali, He's a lot to a Saddam, as the one who perfected these four axes of relationship.

17:50 [SPEAKER_00]: The Ophan Raheem with His own people, with His followers. [SPEAKER_00]: I've done Shakura, with His Lord, a grateful servant, reciting the corrections and the revoke that a lot revealed about Him against His own soul. [SPEAKER_00]: And of course, weeping. [SPEAKER_00]: with longing for the future of Islam.

18:05 [SPEAKER_00]: We ask Allah SWT to make us amongst those who appreciate the teachings of the Prophet Al-Azatu wa Salam and the example that he left for us and we ask Allah SWT to make us amongst those who truly practice it and follow it in every way. [SPEAKER_00]: Seek forgiveness from Allah he is the offergiving, the ever merciful.

18:21 [SPEAKER_00]: Ahul al-Kawliha, thou astaghfirul al-Aliwala, al-Konfestafiru. [SPEAKER_00]: Inna huhu al-Rafur al-Rai.