Etiquettes of Business (2/2)

8. Work hard and demand hard and sincere work from your employees, Discharge your obligations towards your employees with selflessness and generosity and in a liberal and polite manner. Avoid scowling at them frequently or adopting an attitude of suspicion towards them in every matter. The Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) observed: "Allah never blesses a nation with piety where the weak do not get their right."

9. Be polite and liberal to your customers. Never be harsh to those who ask for loan from you neither disappoint them, nor press them unduly hard for return of your loan. The Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has affirmed:

"May Allah bless the person who observes politeness and courtesy in business dealing and in demanding his money back.” (Reported by Bukhari)

Moreover, the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) observed:

"Any person who craves for the protection of Allah against the affliction and oppression of the Day of Judgement should allow enough time to the hard-pressed debtor or relieve him of the burden of debt altogether." (Reported by Muslim)

10. Avoid concealing the defect of the goods and making false representations to the customer. You should openly declare the defects or inferior quality of your goods to the customer.

Once the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) passed by a heap of grain. The Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) put his hand into the heap and felt that his finger had caught some dampness. The Prophet of Allah (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) enquired from the grain dealer, "What is this?" The dealer submitted: "O Holy Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon you)! Some rain poured over this heap". Thereupon the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) observed: “Why did you not put the wet grain on top of the heap so that people may  readily notice it. The man who deceives people has nothing to do with me."

11. Do not hoard foodstuffs anticipating a rise in prices. Strictly avoid causing distress to the people by such a vicious act. The Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) observed: "The hoarder is-a sinner.” On another occasion the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) observed: "How wicked is the hoarder! When Allah makes goods cheap, the hoarder afflicted with sorrow, and when the prices go up, he rejoice.”

12. Give the customer full value of his money. Be honest in weights and measures. Stick to one standard of give and take. Addressing the dealers on weights and measures, the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) warned:

“You have been charged with two duties while the people before you have perished only because they failed to fulfill these duties.”

The Holy Qur’an affirms:

"Woe unto the defrauders; those when they take the measure from others they demand it full, but if they measure unto them or weigh for them they give less. Do such (men) not consider that they will be raised again unto an awful Day, the day when (all) mankind stand before the Lord of the world.” (Surah Al-Mutaffifin, 83: 2-6)

13. Do compensate for lapses of business ethics and give away in cash and kind as much as you can in the name of Allah without fail. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) enjoined upon the traders:

"O traders and businessmen! There is every chance of exaggeration and lie in selling your commodities. Hence compensate (your faults) by spending as much as you can (to help the poor and needy).” (Reported by Abu-Dawud)

14. And never lose sight of that business which will secure you from the fearful tortures in the life hereafter and pay you in terms of eternal prosperity, peace and pleasure. The Holy Qur'an affirms:

“O ye who believe! Shall I show you a Commerce that will save you from a painful doom; ye should believe in Allah and His Messenger and should strive for the cause of Allah with your wealth and your lives. That is better for you, if ye did but know.” (Surah As-Saff, 61: 10-11)