So what IS the Divine Duty all about, anyway?

A New, Slicker Substack. A mini rebrand of this Substack and what to expect going forward.

For the eagle-eyed amongst you, you’ll have noticed some big changes here recently.

• A new name for this publication. (The Divine Duty was previously called Purpose, Polymathy and Potential).

• A new snazzy logo.

• A cleaner design, with a clear identity and brand colours.

• Some longer-form articles which go into detail of a few of the core ideas I stand for - such as the Divine Duty 3-part series and Fly High and Serve.

• Some wider articles on business, entrepreneurship and money matters.

• A regular monthly newsletter (we’re now 3 editions in).

• Much more consistent, regular content - we’ve more than doubled our output from averaging 3 articles a month to well over 6.

Another big update is I’ve also got rid of the paywall so all of my articles are free to read whether you subscribe or not. (Of course, if you do subscribe I really appreciate it and it really helps the work I do - everything I get from here goes back into the craft!)

Previously, only new articles less than two weeks old could be read and everything older was paywalled and archived.

There’s also been a lot of experimentation with different types of content (e.g. a new monthly newsletter format) as well as more ‘personal brand’ shorter content on social media, using the Notes more and even the Substack Chat.

So, why all the changes?

There’s a few reasons…

1. Turning 40 earlier this year got me thinking - what do I want for this upcoming decade? My 20’s were spent in climbing the career ladder in the corporate world. My 30’s were spent pursuing various entrepreneurial ventures. Now that I’m officially in my 40’s - I wanted to have more of an impact with the work I do enjoy and do best - my ideas and my writing to achieve one of my big goals to become a published author.

2. Push out of my comfort zone. Whilst I’ve been very active and very busy for years and years now, I’ve also been notoriously private and have preferred to stay behind the scenes, no matter what I do. I’ve preferred to let others take the limelight and centre stage. Perhaps this speaks to my introverted nature! But a recent conversation with a mentor made me realise that I am doing myself (and most importantly, my mission) an injustice by not getting my ideas out there in the best way. So I want to start giving value, much much more. Which begins with giving more of myself.

3. I’ve recently relaunched KNOW, my education and training company that helps Muslims to find their purpose, fulfil their potential and have more impact in the world. Part of that relaunch is all about getting what we do out more, and in order to do that, to become more founder-led as a brand, as opposed to the semi-faceless company we were previously.

4. Much of the work and research I’ve done over the past 5+ years has been to dive deeper than most to solve the problem of finding purpose as a Muslim in the most robust, thorough way. When I had this problem myself, I was frustrated with the lack of resources available from an Islamic perspective. There are almost 2 billion of us - and purpose and fulfilling human potential is such a universal problem. I’ve developed so many frameworks, concepts and models to help people to get the end-to-end transformation, so I’ve got a lot to share. Many of these are usually only available to paying clients in my premium transformation program called Know Your Purpose but will feature in my upcoming writing.

5. I didn’t want to charge for my writing. I don’t write to get paid. My writing is also an output for me and helps me to think more clearly. So I get a benefit out of that too. There’s too much value to have it locked away. If it’s of benefit and you want to contribute then great but it’s no longer a requirement. I also believe ideas should be accessible - and if people want support with executing or implementing some of those ideas, then that is what is can be charged for.

6. As mentioned, part of my goals for the next couple of years are to write a book (or three!). When that time comes, of course I would love to have a loyal readership of followers who enjoy my work and would like to grab a copy for themselves and their loved ones.

7. On a similar theme - it’s more important than ever in our divided and detached world to find your tribe, a community to foster a deeper connection with. Substack is one part of that. Another side of it is the free Skool Community which you can join here.

8. I’ve been writing for ten years now. My home for articles used to be Medium. For a while, I crossposted. But earlier this year, I decided to move on to Substack fully. A single focus, a single channel for longer form writing. Less is more.

9. On that note, I have ALWAYS been a generalist - I am curious and fascinated by lots of different things. Often, my writing reflected this. The below Allama Iqbal quote therefore really hits home:

''If you wish to be heard in the noise of this world, let your soul be dominated by a single idea. It is the man with a single idea who creates political and social revolutions, establishes empires and gives law to the world.'' - Allama Iqbal

Therefore - it’s time to hone in more on that SINGLE idea - to channel the chaos into the central theme and to be more controlled in my output.

10. What is that single idea? Well, some might think it’s to help people find their purpose. It’s the easiest way of explaining it so that’s sort of true. But I don’t actually like saying I help people find their purpose. It seems too small, too trivial for such a huge role. Purpose is linked to why we are here and how we are to spend our most precious commodity - our time - it’s the most important question of all. Therefore I prefer saying I help people discover their divine duty. This is much more accurate. (Here’s how you can tell how closely you are aligned to this.)

11. What does that even mean I hear you cry? In simple terms - I believe we all have a divine duty - given directly to us from the Creator. And our unique blend of skills, experiences and passions are all gifts (and clues) as to what that divine duty actually is. When you find it and live by that mission - it unlocks your potential and allows you to become who you were truly meant to be.

12. Because of this, I’ve become much more clearer in what I do, who I serve and also to differentiate who I am and what I represent, from what my companies do. An example of this is the Second Golden Age Newsletter - which is a separate newsletter for KNOW. I write there also - but it is a completely different entity from The Divine Duty, which is my personal newsletter.

13. Here’s what you can expect going forward from this Substack:

    1. At least one new article a week.

    2. One monthly newsletter on different themes

    3. Regular short-form posts in the Notes

    4. The DM’s and chat to be open for discussions.

    5. Possible video / audio podcast content in the new year.

    6. Open to opportunities for collaboration and connection.

    7. Oh - and lots of free resources, guides, eBooks and content to download and assist you in your journey even more. Like this one. Or this one. Or even this.

It’s time to get the mission out there and help you to finally discover your divine duty.

I am looking forward to serving you.

Faisal