Our Thoughts and Their Downstream Impact

The next couple of articles will discuss the mindset required to do your best when investing. Remember, clarity about why you do something makes it easier to remain committed when circumstances change. Just like in worship and belief, if you understand the true meaning behind why you do what you do, you are more likely to stick with it. This increases the probability of obtaining an outcome you are satisfied with, in this world and the next.

When a person begins a journey, it almost always starts with a thought. The journey to build a career in a certain field. The fitness/health journey you want to start or build on. The desire to obtain financial freedom. Almost anything we do, we do built on a thought we have. With that said, have you ever thought about the quality of your thought? I don’t mean to sound like a philosopher or a snob. In fact, it’s a question that I think (no-pun intended) is very practical.

We can all come to an agreement that whatever it is we want to build, we want it to last. A career that is solid. Health that has a strong foundation. Finances that can withstand shocks and challenges. Why don’t we then apply the same logic to what our thoughts are built on? The same thoughts that leads us to action (or inaction)? My goal in this article is to show the link between how thoughts built on whims and desires vs thoughts built on principles and solid convictions (backed by facts/objective measures) can lead or mislead you to the wrong investments.

What we allow to occupy our mind, we allow to lead our lives. When all you consume is empty social media content from superficial influencers, your mind (and thoughts) will be consumed by their (portrayed) priorities. They can range anywhere from wealth to beauty standards to the latest fashion trend. This can lead to you continuously chasing the next “golden” opportunity of promised riches or the youthful/trendy fitness routine to maintain a certain look.

When you consume news, especially mainstream media news (what bleeds is what leads), your mind will most likely think about how the world is ending. It can tell you how world “leaders” are taking the world to hell in a hand basket (while they cash-in during their tenures). This can lead you to selling all your investments because the market will inevitably crash. You can start to see patterns and conspiracy theories where there is none (which ironically discount the real conspiracies that harm the world at large). What may seem as an innocent hobby to scroll through your feed or “staying informed” can nudge you to act in ways that can negatively impact the quality of your life.

On the other hand, if you choose to consume educational content, financial news from practitioners who have real skin in the game (not your traditional economist who lives in a theoretical world), or a reputable imam/religious scholar, you enhance the quality of your thoughts. Better quality thoughts can lead to better decisions (or at the very least increase the probability those decisions lead to positive outcomes).

My goal with this article series is to provide clarity to the Muslim investor (or any investor who wishes to invest ethically) in a sea of noise and junk that can influence your thoughts, and therefore the quality of your investments. I also hope that this series encourages more Muslims to invest in the US stock market (or their home-base stock market if it’s developed) and take advantage of an incredible resource that is at their disposal. It’s easy to judge the world from a comfortable chair-armchair quarterback in American lingo-but being the man in the arena is much more respectable. Remember, “Wisdom without action isn’t wisdom at all. It’s just trivia”.

To take the point home of the difference between thoughts built on desires/whims and principle based thoughts, I’ll end it with an Ayah that we read every Friday. The wisdom in these lines are applicable to aspects beyond this life and the afterlife. It can be applied to where your desires and whims can lead you, a heart shielded from God and a scattered life of your own making:

‫وَٱصۡبِرۡ نَفۡسَكَ مَعَ ٱلَّذِینَ یَدۡعُونَ رَبَّهُم بِٱلۡغَدَوٰةِ وَٱلۡعَشِیِّ یُرِیدُونَ وَجۡهَهُۥۖ وَلَا تَعۡدُ عَیۡنَاكَ عَنۡهُمۡ تُرِیدُ زِینَةَ ٱلۡحَیَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنۡیَاۖ وَلَا تُطِعۡ مَنۡ أَغۡفَلۡنَا قَلۡبَهُۥ عَن ذِكۡرِنَا وَٱتَّبَعَ هَوَىٰهُ وَكَانَ أَمۡرُهُۥ فُرُطࣰا﴿ ٢٨ ﴾‬

Al-Kahf, Ayah 28

Thank you for reading. Keep searching forward.