How does one remain sane and focused when all around
life continues while fasting? Here are 7 ways to manage
your sanity while working in Ramadan as suggested by
Productive Muslim
Planning your meals is primary
The first thing to do is to think about what you are going
to eat at suhoor and iftar. What you eat has a very
powerful impact on your energy levels and whilst we
need the right proportion of carbs, protein, fruits and
vegetables, we do need to make sure that we do not
overload on carbs.
When you eat too many carbs and your body has to
work harder to process it, you will feel lethargic and
tired. Chances are, this is a big reason why you feel
lethargic at work.
And when you feel sluggish at work, you are less
productive and less able to do a good job. At the end of
the day even though you are fasting you still need to
make sure that you put in the right amount of effort in
order for you to earn your wage.
If you are going to work and believe that you can just go
in and do the hours and not be as productive then it’s a
major mistake. The requirement for ihsan (excellence) at
work does not change just because Ramadan has come
in. If anything, has it not increased along with its
reward?
Plan your annual leave in advance
Unless you are reading this in the last 10 days of
Ramadan, do your best to book these days off as annual
leave. That way you can focus entirely on Ramadan
rather than having to balance the struggle between work
and fasting. Come the end of the month, you will be left
feeling a lot better about what you were able to achieve,
rather than feeling that it has just slipped by.
However, if you are a school or university student with
no proper holidays, then plan your last ten days in
advance on making the best of non-school/class hours.
Make a schedule of how you want to spend each hour of
the day from traveling back from school in the vehicle till
iftar and taraweeh to the end of the day.
Maximize your time with the Qu’ran
I remember focusing on reading the Qur’an outside
Ramadan once. I would read on the journey to work, in
spare moments here and there and amazingly I was
reading an average of three chapters a day without
much difficulty. What I discovered was: when you set an
intention and then act on it, it’s amazing what you can
achieve.
Make your lunch breaks productive!
Be deliberate about what you are going to do in your
lunch break, but make sure you take it. You have a
number of options: you can go out for a walk and get
some fresh air, spend extra time on your prayer, read or
memorize Qur’an, meditate or take a nap.
These are just some ideas and surely there are many
others. Pick one and do it for a week (or even 10 days at
a time) and then change so that you don’t get bored.
Often what happens is we set our minds on doing
something, we don’t change it and then get bored. Have
a lunch break buddy wherein you can share verses that
you came across, or recite to each other perhaps.
Face workplace challenges patiently
List down what are the probable challenges you might
face while working and plan ways to combat them
efficiently. Here are some possible tips and tricks of
getting through the challenges productively:
Frustrating traffic:
Play Qur’an along your journey or if you have a CD of
your favorite mentor speaking then play that. Focus on
listening to it attentively, and you won’t feel the traffic
or the heat! Also, what better time than this to do dhikr.
Allah subḥānahu wa ta’āla (glorified and exalted be He)
says,
“Unquestionably, by the remembrance of Allah hearts are
assured.” [Qur’an: Chapter 13, Verse 28]
Bullies at work:
There are many things that give us the opportunity to
learn and reflect at work. I find that working lunches are
fine because you just know that you are unable to eat –
focus on the reward that you are receiving and that
should keep you going.
Remember that fasting is an act of worship that is
between you and Allah, only He knows if you are really
fasting. You will encounter the odd person that says ‘go
on, have something, noone will know if you eat and
drink something.’ Have a little patience in responding,
it’s an opportunity for you to do dawah.
If individuals are particularly challenging approach your
manager or HR to ask for guidance on what to do. Most
employers tend to be aware of their responsibilities to
employees during Ramadan.
Too much work that effects the time for prayer or
reading Qur’an:
Take a five-ten minute break to relax and read the
Qur’an. Not only does it help you insert Ibadah into your
busy schedule, it actually serves as a productive way of
working by getting you freshened up for the next task. As
for prayer, make it a habit to make your work revolve
around prayer.
Prioritize it by going for prayer no matter what work
you’re doing or are in the middle of. It also adds a lot of
barakah (blessings) to your time and work!
Remind yourself of the reward of having patience,
Ramadan being the perfect time to learn to practice it.
The ultimate secret: Plan what you will do when you
get home from work
It doesn’t matter if you want to have a nap or if you
want to just veg out for a little while and unwind, the
key is to be deliberate. When you know what you are
doing, it becomes a lot easier for you to maximise your
time even if you are just relaxing or sleeping. Now if you
get home from work and have kids and other
responsibilities waiting for you, then my
recommendation is to have a nap on the journey home
from work (unless you are driving of course!).
If you have a lot to do when you get home then I am
going to suggest that because in the summer time Fajr is
so early, you can spend a short time afterwards doing
dhikr or reading Qur’an and then try to go to sleep again
and wake up as late as you can to get ready and go to
work. Plan to sleep immediately after taraweeh so as to
wake up fresh and early for suhoor and tahajjud (night
prayer). There is a lot of barakah in these early hours
and so use them to finish your homeworks etc.
This is where planning is fundamental. You cannot do
everything, its all about balance and during Ramadan the
key is to burn the candle at one end only so that you can
maximise your ibadah and yet not wear yourself out.
The most important way to maintain your sanity is to
focus on it. You know you are going to get ratty, you
know you are going to find it a little challenging ,so focus
on being calm and present during each and every fast
and renew the intention each day. Ramadan Kareem!

Bleep your Allah and Bleep Ramadan. Religious goats!

Allureoftheseas:
Bleep your Allah and Bleep Rama dan. Religious goats!

may Allah forgive you.

yashau:
may Allah forgive you.

Mehn Bleep allah