5. Behavioural Changes

Give Away (infaq) to Increase Etymological roots of zekat and riba have the same meaning; to increase. As stated at the beginning, it’s a freedom of choice for the human to intend and act. So, how something increases is more important than what increases. What impact do you want to have in this life?: – zāy kāf wāw (ز ك و) – rā bā wāw (ر ب و) In terms of money, if you are intending to buy one of the world's most expensive houses, and they are extremely overpriced, you won’t need more than £500 million. On the other hand, 4 billion people live $0-8 a day, and the wealth of the 1% is equal to the other 99%. There is nothing wrong with being rich, but being on one end of the wealth spectrum. If your monthly expenses are £1 million, that makes £12 million annually, if you live 40 more years, it’s £480 million. You don’t need billions (israf). But giving away is not only with money, or only for the rich. Feeding a street animal, cleaning a road from blockers, sharing your experience, helping elders carry groceries, even smiling are acts of being generous. Serving to everything and everyone around us. Isn’t this what the most famous stories, characters of our times convey? Think of all the mythological heroes of this millennium. As of 2024, the 34 films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe form the highest-grossing film series even when adjusted for inflation, surpassing J. K. Rowling's Wizarding World (11 films), Star Wars (12 films), Ian Fleming's James Bond (27 films), and J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth (6 films) series. Share Risk Rewards as Generosity This is not only relevant in Islam but also exists in deeply rooted cultures. Being generous is a value held across many societies. Economic production is not a linear journey; there are ups and downs. Those who grow larger and wealthier must support SMEs and vulnerable businesses. Things like Lockheed Martin originating the creation Silicon Valley or Mercedes rescuing Porsche from bankruptcy. The same principle applies to consumers. For instance, in the world's largest asset class—real estate—homeownership is considered a significant life milestone. Challengers like Pfida offer alternatives to traditional mortgages, providing buyers with more leverage through a co-ownership, interest-free approach. Similarly, Divvy offers a rent-to-own model. Both help customers build equity: Divvy allocates part of the rent toward a down payment, while Pfida allows buyers to gradually purchase its share. Distinguish Need to Haves and Nice to Haves Essential goods and services (need-to-haves) are critical for survival and well-being; hence, their prices can’t be speculative and should be regulated. Luxuries (nice-to-haves) are secondary and can have subjective pricing aimed at targeted consumers. For example, bakeries producing bread or butchers selling meat cannot speculate on the price unless they have a tangible difference within their supply chain. One must prove that their process is unique, such as through materials, production techniques, etc. If not, they cannot justify placing a higher price tag on need-to-haves. Need-to-haves must be accessible to as many people as possible within society. If they are not satisfied with the business of need-to-haves, they should venture into the business of nice-to-haves by innovating. For example, they could open a patisserie like Cédric Grolet, become the next Salt Bae, or design the next Apple. Nice to haves are subjective. This doesn’t mean speculating, or lying but in a free market, you have the right to put your justified price tag. Making Leaders – Etymological roots of government (gu bern are); guide, rule, govern – Etymological roots of devlet (da wa la); turn, alternate, transform Not only the role of government but the concept of governance should be to serve and transform on behalf of society as devlet implies. So, the leaders of resources be it state, money, military, etc.

are the ones serving society the most, not ruling them. When leaders who serve the society the most come to the top, corruption becomes very hard as they are not at that position because they chase a name, seek power, or earn money, but because of the intention of serving. They didn’t ask to be in that position, but they were assigned to do it with the reputation. Today, renewed names all around the world have stores where they sacrificed their life for the rest of us. They didn’t rule, they transformed. Isn’t this what management theory teaches today? Entrepreneurial Resource Allocation Evidence-based investing forms the foundation of resource allocation. If there is no societal demand, extending roads or building facilities is misguided. The government should only build when society expresses a need for a product or service, and then collect the cost through transparent taxes. Similarly, the government can open tenders and select a company to build, with the company charging the consumers who regularly use the product or service. Just like the TfL of London, build operate transfer models, or waste management companies of the US. If a community facing a particular challenge has sufficient resources to develop a solution or transform something on its own, they should build as advocates of the challenge. They scale the solution, create economic production, and society benefits as a whole rather than expecting the government to build it.