Prophetic

Leadership
By Ishaq Bin Sadiq

1
Objective:
Learning irrefutable laws of Leadership presented by John Maxwell, backed by the
examples of the greatest of all Leaders, Prophet Muhammad SAW and awakens
the leader within, which enables a person to ACT as a Leader.

2
Leadership:
Leadership can be described as the ability of an individual to influence, motivate, and enable
others to contribute toward the effectiveness and success of an organization or group of which
they are members.

Abdullah bin Umar reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said,
“All of you are shepherds and each of you is responsible for his flock. An Imam is a shepherd
and he is responsible for those in his care. A man is a shepherd in respect of his family and is
responsible for those in his care. The woman is a shepherd in respect of her husband’s house
and is responsible for what is in her care. The servant is a shepherd in respect of his master’s
property and is responsible for what is in his care. All of you are shepherds and each of you is
responsible for his flock.”
What is the modern-day equivalent to the work shepherd in this hadith? IT’S LEADER! So
reread the hadith above, but this time, replace the word shepherd, with the word leader.
Prophet Muhammad SAW as a Leader:
The mark of the training lies in what happens when the leader is not present to direct his
followers. And it is at that time that the leadership training of Abu Bakr (RA), the primary
student of Rasoolullah (SAW) was seen at its best. By his actions he demonstrated that
Rasoolullah (SAW) had chosen the best.

3
1. The Law of the Lid
Leadership Ability Determines a Person’s Level of Effectiveness

“If greatness of purpose, smallness of means and astounding results are the three criteria of
human genius, who would dare to compare any great man in history with Muhammad?
Philosopher, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational beliefs, of a
cult without images, the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and one spiritual empire, that is
Muhammad. As regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may
well ask, is there any man greater than he?”
[Historie de le Turquie, Paris 1854, Vol.11.Pages 276-77]
Gauge yourself as a leader through this scale. Where do you stand?
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Ineffective   Extremely Effective

Reflection Questions on the Law:

So what is your leadership lid? If we’re not striving to be 10’s, then we’re not striving to be like
the Prophet Muhammad SAW
3 S Tool to increase your leadership ability:
- Seek opportunities to grow your leadership.
- Search to improve your organizational structures and procedures.
- Seize opportunities to create greater efficiencies and to assist others in lifting their lids.

4
2. THE LAW OF INFLUENCE
The True Measure of Leadership Is Influence—Nothing More, Nothing Less
John Maxwell writes, “If you don’t have influence, you will never be able to lead others”
“My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world's most influential persons may surprise
some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was
supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels.”
- Micheal M. Hart, The 100

Let’s look at the Influence of Prophet Muhammad SAW:

Only a few short years after the Prophet SAW and his followers were forced out of their
hometown of Makkah, he came back accompanied by 10,000 others and became the ruler.
Within the next 100 years, the Islamic Empire stretched from Morocco to China. Fourteen
hundred years later, Muhammad is the most popular name in the world, and there are over
1.3 billion Muslims spread out across the entire globe. His name is being repeated across the
globe millions of times daily. His life is being studied in homes, masajid and universities across
the globe. Whether you walk into a mosque in Tokyo, Delhi, Dubai, London, New York City, Los
Angeles, Morocco or Sydney, you will hear Surah al-Fatiha being recited and see people
praying the way that the Prophet SAW used to pray.
The incredible ways Prophet SAW influenced the course of human history would require
volumes upon volumes of books to enumerate.
3. THE LAW OF PROCESS
Leadership develops daily, not in a day

This process entails first 3 revelation of Quran:

- Knowledge (Surah Alaq)
- Self-contemplation (Surah Muzammil)
- Action/Application (Surah Mudathir)

Have you heard that Prophet Muhammad SAW ever took break for a single day?

5
4. LAW OF NAVIGATION:
Anyone can Steer the Ship, but It Takes a Leader to Chart the Course

Strategic Planning of Prophet Muhammad SAW:

1. In Dawah:
 Marriages
 Support of His uncle Abu Talib
2. In Politics:
 Sending Ambassadors to different rulers
 Trading
 Developing young leadership
 Traveling for Hajj
3. In Safeguarding his Message:
 Memorization of Quran
 Recording his Message in text form.

Ask yourself:
What is my long term vision for myself, my family, my community and my organization, and
what steps do we need to take to make that vision come to life?
Note: People don’t rise to low expectations. They rise to high expectations.

6
5. THE LAW OF CONNECTION
Leaders touch a heart before they ask for a Hand.
Examples:
 Prophet’s Conduct with non-muslims
 Entitled with the title of Trustworthy and Honest
 Battle of Uhud

6. THE LAW OF SOLID GROUND

Trust is the Foundation of Leadership
 Prophet’s words when he was offered to travel on camel:
‘You are not stronger than I am and I need the reward as much as you do.’
 Al Bara’a (RA) says, ‘On the day of Khandaq I saw Rasoolullah SA carrying earth until
there was so much mud on him that I could not see his skin anymore.’
 When someone asked Ayesha (RA) about the life of Rasoolullah SAW she replied, ‘Don’t
you read the Qur’an?’

7
Important notes:

To get more knowledge on this topic, you can go through following materials:
1. Leadership lessons from the Life of the Prophet SAW by Mirza Yawar Baig
2. Interactions of Greatest Leader by Sheikh Saleh Al-Munajjid
3. Video Series of Nouman Ali Khan on Leadership
4. Video lecture on “You are shepherd” by Dr Tawfique Chowdhury.