I have made more progress in achieving my life goals in the last two years than I did in my first 40.

And today I want to share my secret.

Du’a.

Prayer is an essential component to all world religions, and it forms the backbone of Islamic practice. When most Muslims think of prayer, however, they are referring to salah, the five daily prayers that are one of the pillars of Islam.

While salah is absolutely essential, it follows a fixed routine, and it doesn’t lend itself as easily to customization.

Du’a, on the other hand, is a more personal form of prayer, where you can unload your deepest desires and fears to the one being who can solve them all: Allah.

The Most Important Du’a of My Life

The most important du’a I ever made was at Hajj back in 2003. My burning desire at that time (as it is for many young Muslims) was to find a spouse who could be my companion in this world and the next.

On the day of Arafah—the spiritual climax of the pilgrimage—I made a “design-a-bride” du’a in which I shared with Allah the exact qualities I was looking for in a wife.

When I returned from Hajj, I had an email waiting for me from a sister named Ruheena who turned out to be the answer to my prayers.

Within three months of Hajj, we were engaged, and just six months after that life-altering du’a, we were married. This August will mark 20 years, alhamdulillah.

I detailed our remarkable courtship and eventual marriage in “A Preppy WASM Finds a Wife.”

Despite the success of this du’a, for many years I underutilized this form of prayer, falling into a routine for much of the year of somewhat robotic du’as that did not establish a deep connection with Allah.

Every Ramadan, particularly during the last ten nights, I would briefly “lock in” and power my entire year with a few sincere du’as in the last third of the night during tahajjud. But these ultimate flow states of du’a were fleeting, and I rarely accessed them outside of this beautiful month.

Pronounced Prayers: The Power of Du'a Out Loud

A couple of years ago, I stumbled upon a habit that changed everything.

Making du’a out loud.

When I hit the age of 40, I faced the proverbial midlife crisis. Was I fulfilling my potential? Had I allowed myself to get stuck in a rut? What would the second half of my life look like?

This crisis coincided with the onset of the pandemic which, in turn, helped me discover the magic of walking.

In addition to listening to podcasts and audiobooks during my 20,000 steps per day, I began speaking to Allah out loud.

Deep inside beautiful state parks bursting with signs of the Creator and far removed from any other humans, I was inspired to speak with Allah in a more conversational tone than I had ever used before.

Walking unlocks my creativity, and my du’as became intensely personal and increasingly profound. Something about speaking out loud allowed me to reach a level of focus and sincerity that had eluded me for so many years outside of Ramadan.

A Shift from Sole to Soul Solutions

Most of us are doing everything backwards.

When we face a challenge, our first inclination is to ask, “How can I solve this problem? What can I do to make things better?”

Seventeen times a day in Surah Fatiha we say, “Iyyak na’budu wa iyyak nasta’een” (“You alone do we worship, and from You alone do we seek help.”) But our actions show that we are only giving lip service to this prayer, and its reality has not penetrated our heart.

So many of us rely exclusively on ourselves and on worldly asbaab (means) to solve our problems, turning only to Allah when things have become hopeless.

Allah himself has told us about this quality in the following ayah:

The goal of today’s FBF is to convince everyone, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, to tap into the superpower of sincere du’a, especially du’as spoken out loud between only you and Allah.

1. Ramadan: A Du’a a Day

While the du’as I have been discussing so far are personal ones emanating from your heart and typically in your native language, nothing can compare to the Quranic du’as and those taught to us by the Prophet (SAWS).

The wife of my local imam, Sr. Nadia Salma Ahmad, wrote a short book called Ramadan: A Dua a Day. It is a compilation of 30 authentic du’as drawn from the Quran and sunna.

It is magical.

On the 27th night, I have a tradition of going somewhere in nature in the middle of the night using my headlamp and reading all 30 du’as in both Arabic and English.

Here is the very first du’a.

Notice how beautiful and comprehensive it is and what a punch it packs in so few words. SubhanAllah!

2. Moonshot Du’as: Daring to Dream Big

With my “Find Your Qibla” premium coaching students, we are currently working on building “moonshot” du’as that we can make during these precious last 10 days of Ramadan.

These are powerful, ambitious prayers that stretch our imagination and faith. A “moonshot” du’a is bold and aspirational and intertwines your worldly ambitions with your hopes for the hereafter. 

In order to qualify as a “moonshot,” the du’a needs to give you butterflies, be a decade in length, and include elements of both dunya and akhira.

I built my first moonshot du’a when I took Visionaire 2030 with Sh. Muhammad Alshareef (rahimahullah).

I always yearned to make a huge impact on the ummah, but I was struggling to figure out how.

I turned this problem over to Allah and begged him to open up the way for me to share my talents and skills with the ummah as a whole.

The fruit of this du’a was Five Before College.

Allah inspired me to found a company that helps Muslim teenagers develop an akhira orientation and arm them with the insider knowledge of how to excel in college admissions and get into the college of their dreams.

The trajectory of my life changed forever when I embraced Islam at the age of 15, and my “moonshot” vision is to transform the ummah one teenager at a time by launching them on a path of dunyawi and spiritual success.

3. Tapping into Times of Acceptance

Last weekend I attended a coaching business conference in San Diego. One of the speakers, a remarkable man named George Bryant, said something that struck me.

“For some reason, I always wake up at 3:30am and am inspired to walk around and talk to God. Last night I was wandering the hallways of the hotel in the middle of the night.”

I shared with him this hadith:

These prayers in the last third of the night are known as tahajjud. During these last 10 days of Ramadan, most mosques offer communal tahajjud prayers starting at 2 or 3am.

I actually find that I have more khusu’ (concentration) when I pray tahajjud on my own. Whether alone at home or in the mosque, after praying 2, 4, or 8 rakaats, be sure to leave time to make du’a.

Any tears that fall from our eyes during these du’as are sufficient to put out oceans of fire.

The most special time of all is Laylat al-Qadr, which Allah describes as better than 1000 months. Oliver Burkeman wrote a great self-help book called “Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals.”

Both 1000 months and 4000 weeks represent 83 years, the average life span of a healthy person. This infographic breaks down the untold reward possible to unlock during Laylat al-Qadr.

4. The Catalyst of the 99 Names of Allah

One of the best ways to start your du’a is to call out to Allah using some or all of His 99 names. While the oneness of Allah is the central tenet of Islam, the 99 names are ways that He has described Himself that allude to different elements of His Majesty.

By prefacing your du’a with Yaa Allah, Yaa Aleem, Yaa Khabeer, etc. and pondering on these attributes, you are able to “lock in” and recognize the immense privilege you have to be in communion with the One.

I find repeating “Yaa Allah” ten or more times electrifies my body and makes my hairs stand on end. It is the perfect way to catalyze the du’a mindset.

5. Applying Our Superpower in Daily Life

I used to only make du’a for things pertaining to the akhira. Once I began begging Allah for my dunyawi needs as well, I really tapped into the superpower of du’a.

Let me give a practical example to illustrate what I mean.

As I recounted last week, I recently participated in a marathon of 25 sales calls in two weeks. Before each of these calls, to get myself in the zone and to give the greatest chance of success, I would turn to Allah.

“Yaa Allah, I am going to be speaking to Aisha & Omar. They are coming to me because they think I can help them increase their iman, discover their purpose, and get into the college of their dreams. But yaa Allah, I cannot do anything. It is You alone who control the hearts. If there be good in this program and it will help them grow closer to You, then You allow them to join Find Your Qibla. If it would harm them in any way, please prevent them from joining. I beg you to enliven my tongue and expand my chest, just as you did for Moses when he spoke to Pharaoh. These students are in complete need of You and I beg You to allow me to be a conduit to help them get there.”

I have no doubt that it is thanks to this du’a that Allah allowed me to close 12 of the 25 sales.

Articles like this are not about information.

They are about transformation.

While I of course love the dopamine hits of your likes and comments, my greatest ask is that you take action on this advice and call out to Allah aloud in the last third of the night.

Whether you are Muslim or not, you are calling out to the same God, and He will answer your prayers inshAllah.

And, if you remember, please remember to make du’a for me.

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