“Happy people give better performances. I want my players to know that I appreciate what they do for me.”—Tommy Lasorda, Manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers for four National League pennants.
 
Ramadan is usually a busy month for all Muslims, as we are expected to wake up early for prayers and stay at the mosque at night for a lengthy special prayer called tarawih. Many Muslim professionals often struggle to attend tarawih prayers due to their busy schedules. However, there are many ways to balance our professional and spiritual obligations. For example, we can discuss with our employer to explore the possibility of resuming and closing earlier than the official time.
 
When I worked with Ms Olufunke Aboyade, SAN as a young lawyer in 2010, she told the Muslim staff at her firm that we could resume at 9:30 a.m. and close at 4:30 p.m., because she knew that Ramadan was usually a busy month for Muslims. Although I didn’t have this privilege at the other law firms where I worked, I usually tried my best to attend as many tarawih prayers as possible during Ramadan.
 
Since I started running Abdu-Salaam Abbas & Co. in 2014, I have introduced a policy that allows our Muslim teammates to maintain a flexible schedule during Ramadan. This policy gives them more time to fulfill their spiritual obligations and bond with their families. One of the teachings of Ramadan is that families and friends should break their fasts together during iftar (dinner).
 
Therefore, one effective way to keep the Muslims on your team happy is to allow them to maintain a flexible schedule during Ramadan.
 
I wish all my Muslim friends Ramadan Mubarak and urge all Muslim professionals to balance our professional obligations with our spiritual obligations in this special month.
 
May the Almighty Allah accept our fasting and prayers.