When I graduated from the university several years ago, I had such hopes as securing a well-paying job in one of the Multi-national oil companies in Nigeria.
I couldn't help but day-dream about the car I would buy, the clothes and jewelleries I would acquire and of course, how much I was going to spend on worthy causes like mosque building and scholarships. I even went ahead to do a Master’s degree program after my service year in order to improve my chances.
As Allaah would have it, the dream is yet to materialize. I got tired of waiting to be short-listed to do interviews in the oil industry and decided to look elsewhere. The banks were next.
I had this lingering doubt about working in a Riba based environment, but I was getting very desperate to have my own source of income. I also tried out one of the big names in the telecommunications industry.
What turned out to be "the problem" was my hijab. After a lot of pressure from family and friends, I agreed to reduce it to a cap (!) in order to "fit in". I was invited for quite a number of job interviews but the reaction was the same! Nothing had changed. They still demanded that I would have to remove my cap if I wanted to work with them.
One interview that really fazed me was one where the head of the panel told me they didn't have space for head covers or beards. It was then it dawned on me that to work in a corporate world, one has to compromise (his religion) to one’s own detriment except if one is exceptionally fortunate. I also understood that when you try to please people and displease Allaah, you end up very unhappy.
With that in my mind, I went back to wearing the hijab and decided to put my hope in Allaah to dispose my affairs in the best way.
About a month later, I met an old acquaintance at a function. As we discussed, I asked him a few questions about a project I was helping a voluntary organization put in place. It was something that had to do with analysis of information. He then told me he knew a company that was into information and data management and asked if I was interested in working there.
The offer was like answer to my prayers. My superiors are conscious Muslims and so there is no pressure on me to conform to un-Islamic standards. Although my salary is not as fat as an oil company's, the atmosphere with its economic challenges and Islamic stability make up for the difference.
I have come to learn that our dreams are sometimes fulfilled in ways and forms we least expected. The only sensible thing to do is to rely on Allaah since only He knows what is ideal for us. Hasheem R. Lagos
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited