First, consider our day-to-day lives. The fast-paced and crammed lifestyle that most of us live is simply not conducive to the pursuit of excellence. Add to that the type of society that we live in. Although some things are slowly beginning to change (with soaring divorce, HIV, substance abuse and crime rates; widespread corruption and scandal amongst public officeholders; and epidemic mediocrity in many if not most social, educational and economic institutions, it is not surprising that many of today’s leaders, activists and educators are now searching for innovative and non-traditional – which, incidentally, often simply means faith-based, grassroots and/or old-fashioned – means of dealing with these and other social problems), for the most part, we have been neither encouraged nor supported to be extraordinary, creative citizens in this society.
The concept of excellence, which we might define as a superior condition, a quality of being the best, is central to Islam. Although this superior status has been conferred upon us by virtue of our profession of faith, we are bound to live up to this assignment by continually striving to develop ourselves. And our pursuit of excellence need not be limited to religious and spiritual arenas. This is evident when we take a look at History and observe the many areas in which Muslims have excelled throughout the ages – Commerce, Government, Military Affairs, the Sciences, Medicine, Engineering, Art and Architecture to name a few.
Although in recent years we have witnessed a tremendous decline in such ideals, to the extent that people are actually ridiculed for being smart, conscientious, positively motivated, and for upholding truth and justice, as Muslims we must never succumb to such influences. We must not lower our standards because it has become unfashionable in certain circles to be intelligent, to work hard, to perform above average. We must not ever allow ourselves to become complacent with where we find ourselves, or to become mediocre. It is much easier to be mediocre – neither very good nor very bad; ordinary; average - to be like everyone else than it is to be excellent. I remember when my oldest daughter was in about first grade, I promised to reward her for good report card grades by giving her a dollar for every ‘A’ and a quarter for every ‘B’ (or quarters for ‘A’s’ and dimes for ‘B’s’ – this was a long time ago – my memory fails me now). She immediately asked me, "What about ‘C’s’? Can’t I get at least a nickel for every ‘C’? Everyone gets ‘C’s’." I went on to explain to her that ‘C’ stood for ‘Average’ in grading scales, and that was why ‘everyone’ got them. I told her that if doing her best earned her a ‘C’, that I would be satisfied; however, I felt that she was capable of doing better than average – indeed, that I believed in her potential to perform excellently, Insha’Allah, in whatever areas she chose to do so. This example shows how easily and how early we become comfortable with the thought of mediocrity.
Mediocrity goes against the grain of Islam. "Ye were evolved to be the Best of Mankind" – not those that fall in between. Not the average, not the ordinary, but the Best. And while in today’s world, where being average is much easier and being different may cause one to stand out and perhaps even be ridiculed or ostracized, "In a world full of followers (as Muslims we are compelled to), DARE TO BE A LEADER!"
"If you think you can’t, and you think you can’t long enough and strong enough, then you can’t because you won’t. But if you think you can, and you think you can long enough and strong enough, then you will try and in trying, Insha’Allah, you will" (Dr. B.J. Palmer, Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine).
