We all know that it is often not what you say, but how you say it, and how you make the person you’re speaking to feel. So, when we are giving advice, surely if our intention is for the other person to benefit we should portray the advice in a way that it will be most receptive to the person we are speaking to and not to our egos.
It may feel good to fact check someone or “drop a fatwa” on them but is it the best way to act in the situation?
Sometimes, the way we say something can be so obnoxious that our point, no matter how enlightened, may never be adopted and so we lose the opportunity to spread good and gain good deeds. This applies to Islamic reminders more, as the effects can be life and akhirah changing.
Also, bear this in mind when talking to elders and especially your parents.
Humble yourself and “remind” them.
“And remind, for verily a reminder benefits the believer” Qur’an 51:55
As always, a reminder to myself first and foremost. I came across the quote in the image earlier and although the author was not speaking from an “Islamic” point of view – one of the aims behind Optimized Muslim is to combine ideas from the self-development world with our Islamic tradition and make the tools and tactics available for people to benefit…in sha Allah
