🎙 Did You Miss the Most Important Notification?

the story of a surprising wake up call

Assalāmu ‘alaykum and Good Evening

Faisal here 👋

Welcome to the Freshly Grounded newsletter, serving you thoughts as crisp as a freshly minted banknote.

What’s new with me? Well I just got off a 7-hour flight with my 2 toddlers who decided that sleep and food is for the weak.

Here’s a tip if you’re travelling with kids: wait until they’re 18.

Anyway, here’s what’s on the menu today:

  • A nugget of wisdom by one of my companions during a dinner at my house

  • New YouTube video on how you can use ChatGPT for your writing

  • Meme of the week

🪫 Lessons from a Dying Battery:

I hosted a gathering at my house the other night and one of the brothers dropped a reflection. It was a tale so profound that I feel compelled to share it with you in this newsletter.

Here’s how the story goes:

He recounted that he was at the mosque recently praying jama’ (I know I roll with legends) and as they went into sujood, a stark disruption pierced the serenity: a person’s phone alarm declared aloud: 'Your battery has less than 5% remaining'.

Here lies the heart of the reflection:

This interruption led him to ponder a hypothetical scenario. Imagine if while we were praying we got a notification from our bodies out loud that notified us of our concentration levels, or khushu?

Imagine an audible alert resonating through the mosque, saying, "You currently have less than 10% khushu remaining".

Think about the level of noise that might ensue within the mosque if each person's 'khushu alerts' were to sound off.

Couple reflections:

  1. Concentration, much like a battery, can fade away. It's a gentle reminder for us to continually strive for increased presence and concentration in our worship, we can do that by finding ways to regularly spiritually recharge.

  2. While others may not know our level of khushu because it’s not announced out loud, you and Allah do know. Something to think about.

🎥 Write Faster and Better with My Prompts

Meme of the Week

☕️ The Black Coffee Briefings:

Bullet-point rundown of news, updates, and caffeinated contemplations:

  • We’ve filmed an episode with Arnaut Danjuma this week but i’ve been sick & travelling so there’ll be a slight delay getting it out

  • This is a cool jobsite that lists jobs specific in the Muslim world

  • Looking for your next million dollar biz idea? We have you covered in the most recent Freshly Grounded podcast. See it here

Join the Freshly Grounded Members-Only Community

Apply to join the members-only discord community of ambitious, like-minded & high calibre Muslims. Here’s some of the key deets:

  • Membership is £7/ month (around $9)

  • Each member is vetted for approval to ensure they bring value to the community.

  • The community is segregated with brothers-only and sisters-only channels.

  • Also get access to a weekly drop-in with Faisal on zoom

And that's the nitty-gritty. Until we rub elbows again, stay smooth and keep your joe strong.

If you want to start your own regular email newsletter, we recommend using Beehiiv (founded by ex-morning brew) and if you use this link, they'll give Freshly Grounded some kickback without any extra charge to you!