What does yours look like?

On Main Quests & Side Quests

Assalamu alaykum dear friend,

Alhamdulillah we’ve come to the end of The Fresh Start Email Series!

If you missed it, you can catch up here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.

We did a deep dive into what a fresh start could look like in the core areas of our lives – Deen, Relationships, Health, Wealth – and we explored ways to make meaningful changes in those areas.

I'm deeply grateful to have gone on the journey with you and I’m so happy (and still smiling so wide, hehe) to know that some of you found specific action items to work on going forward inshaAllah.

As I was writing either episode 3 or 4, I decided that my own fresh start needs to STARRRTTT soon!

We’re currently on week 10 of the 12 Week Du’a Challenge, and almost naturally, I am already thinking about what I’ll be focusing on over the next 12 weeks inshaAllah.

I want to encourage myself and you to focus on one main area at a time inshaAllah.
I’m starting with a fresh start in my relationships inshaAllah.

A lot of people struggle to focus on one thing at a time.

And I get it because… same here!

But something I learnt recently from Ali Abdaal is you can have one main thing you’re focusing on, and you can also have other things on the side.

He calls them “Main Quests” and “Side Quests”.

So your main quest is the non negotiable 100000% all-in thing that you’re going to do, come rain or shine. And the side quests are the other thigns you have going on that you do want to focus on and put time and effort into as well.

Ok, hold on, I’ll use myself as an example.

My Main Quest

My focus area for my next 12 weeks is going to be Relationships, inshaAllah.

Specifically, I’m focusing on my relationship with my children — being more intentional with how I’m (we’re) raising them — especially because I didn’t feel like I gave it my best over the past year.

My kids are my main quest for this next season. (Lol that sounds so-so, but inshaAllah this is a good thing for me and for them 😅)

I do have multiple things going on in the deen, health, and wealth categories of my life.

The goals I have for these areas of my life are important too.

They require time, energy, planning, focus…

But for my this next season, they’re not going to be taking up as much of me as improving my parenting journey will take. Parenting journey is inshaAllah going to be front and centre.

There are many changes I am going to make to my (our) daily/weekly schedule, the way we approach homeschooling, the way I talk to them (planning to yell a lot less friends, *gasps in french*… send help!), improving my knowledge around raising and nurturing them and actually doing the work, bi idhnillah.

This area of my life is going to be my one main thing that will get a big fat fresh start.

My Side Quest(s)

The other areas are side quests, for now.

This doesn’t mean they’re not important.

They are. Very much. They’re super important to me.

It just means I’m going to be showing up with a lot more presence + intention for Littles first, inshaAllah. Front and centre type.

So, those other super important things? They will be my side quests inshaAllah.

• In Deen, I’m making sure I stay on track with some spiritual growth things, including Qur’an & ‘Ilm classes. Making sure I show up to class weekly, at least for my bare minimum non-negotiables.

• In Health, I’m making sure I take my health checks seriously -- make the phone calls when I need to, show up for the blood work appointment and not keep putting it off, book follow up appointments when needed, eat the right things, SLEEP WELL… etc. Sleep well is all caps because the struggle is real!

• And in Wealth, I’m making sure I show up fully and consistently for the projects I’m choosing to work on. Making sure I give these projects my best, even if my ‘best’ is a small chunk of focused time every week, or whatever ‘best’ looks like for me right now.

This whole plan is still a work in progress for me. It’s an open tab in my brain, and I plan to finalize it over the next few weeks inshaAllah.

I will be brainstorming what du’as I want to make constantly for the main and side quests I have chosen to work ok. My fresh start is incomplete without asking Allah to bless me with what I’m seeking. So keep that in mind for yours, inshaAllah.

Ok, now I’m curious…

How does the idea of a main quests and side quest(s) sound to you?

Please reply to this email (or leave a comment) to let me know what your fresh start is going to look like inshaAllah.

• What will your main quest be?

• What will your side quest(s) be?

• What will your fresh start look like?

Let me know :)

Again, jazaakillah khair and thank you so much for being a part of The Fresh Start Email Series.

Love + Du’a,
Maryam

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