For some Muslims, the hardest part of Salah is not believing that it is important. They already know. They know that Salah is one of the greatest acts of worship, that it is obligatory five times a day and that it is a direct connection between the servant and Allah. The real struggle is consistency.

You intend to pray. You tell yourself you will do better tomorrow. You may even feel guilty when you miss a prayer. But then work gets busy, you become tired, you get distracted by your phone, you sleep longer than planned or something else takes your attention. Before long, an entire day has passed without the consistency you wanted.

If this sounds familiar, the answer is not to give up on yourself.

It is to make Salah easier to return to.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is thinking they need to completely transform their lives before they can become consistent with prayer. They imagine that becoming a better Muslim means suddenly waking up every night for Tahajjud, reading large portions of Qur’an every day, fasting regularly and maintaining perfect concentration in every Salah.

These are beautiful goals, but they can become overwhelming if you are already struggling with the basics.

Start with the five daily prayers.

Salah is not something you add to your life after everything else is finished. It is supposed to be part of the structure of your life. Allah says, “Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the believers at specified times.” (Qur’an 4:103).

That means the question should not be whether you have enough time to pray. The prayer is already part of the day. Your responsibility is to organise your day around it.

This change in mindset can make a significant difference.

Instead of thinking, “I need to find time for Salah,” think, “Salah is one of the things my day is built around.”

When you begin treating the prayer times as fixed appointments with Allah, other activities start fitting around them. You can plan your work, errands, meals, journeys and rest with Salah in mind.

The next step is to identify what is actually causing you to miss prayers.

For some people, it is sleep. For others, it is work. Some become so absorbed in their phones that they lose track of time. Some struggle because they are rarely in a state of preparation for prayer. Others have simply developed a habit of delaying Salah until the last possible moment.

Be honest with yourself.

If Fajr is the prayer you regularly miss because you sleep late, the solution may begin the night before. Going to bed at a reasonable time, reducing late-night scrolling and setting an alarm away from your bed can make waking up easier. You cannot expect a completely exhausted body to cooperate with your plans every morning.

If Dhuhr or Asr is difficult because of work or school, look at your schedule before the prayer time arrives. Find out where you can pray. Speak to your workplace or school when necessary. Keep what you need for Salah accessible. A few minutes of preparation can remove a lot of unnecessary difficulty.

If Maghrib and Isha are difficult because you become distracted at home, make the prayer a priority before getting absorbed in entertainment, conversations or social media.

The principle is simple: do not wait until the last minute to figure out how you are going to pray.

Preparation makes obedience easier.

Another important habit is to respond to the prayer rather than negotiating with yourself every time you hear the adhan.

That internal conversation can sound very innocent.

“I’ll pray in a few minutes.”

“Let me finish this first.”

“I’ll do it before the time ends.”

“I am too tired right now.”

Sometimes those few minutes become an hour.

The more often you delay, the easier delaying becomes.

When the prayer time arrives, train yourself to move. You do not have to feel perfectly motivated first. You do not need a special spiritual feeling before standing up.

This is important because many people mistakenly believe that they need to “feel religious” before they pray.

You do not.

There will be days when Salah feels deeply spiritual. There will also be days when your mind is tired, your heart feels heavy and concentration is difficult. You still pray.

Salah is not only for the days when you feel close to Allah. Salah is one of the things that helps you become close to Allah.

Sometimes the act of getting up and making wudu is itself the beginning of a spiritual change.

Another way to make Salah easier is to understand what you are saying.

It is possible to pray for years while barely thinking about the meaning of the words. When that happens, Salah can begin to feel like something you are mechanically completing.

Take time to learn the meaning of what you recite.

Understand Al-Fatihah. Learn the meaning of the tashahhud. Learn the meaning of the adhkar you say in ruku’ and sujud. When you understand that you are praising Allah, asking Him for guidance, declaring His greatness and speaking to Him through worship, the prayer becomes more meaningful.

You may still become distracted, and that is normal. Khushūʿ is something believers strive for; it is not something that appears perfectly every time.

When your mind wanders, bring it back.

Then bring it back again.

Do not turn one distracted Salah into a reason to stop trying.

Your phone also deserves serious attention.

Many of us spend hours training our minds to expect constant stimulation. One notification appears, then another video, another message, another post. We become accustomed to moving quickly from one thing to another.

Then we stand for Salah and expect the mind to become completely quiet within seconds.

That can be difficult.

Creating small periods of distance from your phone can help. Put it on silent before praying. Do not carry unnecessary notifications into the prayer. If you are praying at home, leave the phone somewhere it cannot constantly attract your attention.

The goal is not simply to avoid distraction during Salah. It is to gradually teach your mind that it does not need to respond to everything immediately.

Another powerful habit is to keep your wudu as much as possible.

When you are already in a state of wudu, one barrier between you and Salah has been removed. You do not have to start from zero every time the prayer approaches.

This is particularly useful during busy days.

Likewise, know where you will pray before you need to pray. At home, have a clean and convenient place. At work, identify a suitable prayer space. When travelling, think ahead about where and how you will pray.

The easier you make the practical side of Salah, the less opportunity you give yourself to create excuses.

But there is something even more important than alarms, schedules and prayer spaces.

You have to remember why you are praying.

Salah is not simply another task on your daily checklist.

It is an obligation from Allah and one of the greatest means of maintaining your relationship with Him. Five times every day, the distractions of the world are interrupted so that you can turn back to your Creator.

Your job can wait for a few minutes.

Your phone can wait.

Your messages can wait.

Your entertainment can wait.

Allah deserves a few minutes of your attention.

The Prophet ﷺ described Salah as a source of comfort and tranquillity. That is a beautiful way to think about prayer. It is not merely something taking time away from your day. It can become one of the things that gives your day meaning.

When you are anxious, you have Salah.

When you are grateful, you have Salah.

When you are confused, you have Salah.

When you have sinned, you have Salah and the opportunity to return to Allah.

When life feels overwhelming, you have a place to stand before the One who knows what you are carrying.

This is why you should never think, “I have missed so many prayers, so there is no point starting again.”

Start again.

If you have been inconsistent, become consistent from the next prayer.

If you missed a prayer, deal with it according to the appropriate Islamic ruling and then focus on what comes next. Do not allow guilt to become another reason for staying away from Allah.

Shaytan benefits when a person turns one failure into an identity.

“I missed Salah, so I am a bad Muslim.”

“I have been inconsistent for months, so I cannot change.”

“I have too many sins, so Allah will not accept me.”

These thoughts can push a person further away.

Allah tells us, “Do not despair of the mercy of Allah.” (Qur’an 39:53).

You are not required to become perfect overnight.

You are required to keep returning.

There may also be people reading this who have never developed a consistent prayer routine at all. If that is you, do not spend weeks planning the perfect spiritual transformation.

Begin.

Take the next prayer seriously.

Then take the one after that seriously.

Let consistency become your goal.

As the days pass, begin improving other aspects of your worship. Learn more Qur’an. Improve your manners. Give charity. Make more dhikr. Learn about the life of the Prophet ﷺ. Stay away from sins that you know are damaging your heart.

But let Salah remain central.

Because becoming a better Muslim is not about creating a perfect appearance overnight. It is about gradually becoming more obedient, more conscious of Allah and more sincere in the way you live.

Do not underestimate what five daily prayers can do to a person’s life.

They teach you to stop what you are doing for Allah. They teach you that your schedule has a higher purpose. They teach you discipline. They repeatedly remind you that this world is not everything. They give you opportunities throughout the day to repent, remember Allah and reset your heart.

You may begin by forcing yourself to stand for Salah.

Eventually, you may find yourself looking forward to it.

That transformation takes time.

So make things easier for yourself. Prepare for the prayer. Protect your sleep. Reduce distractions. Understand what you recite. Keep your wudu when possible. Know where you will pray. Respond when the prayer time arrives instead of constantly postponing it.

Most importantly, ask Allah to help you.

Make du’a for consistency. Ask Him to make Salah beloved to your heart. Ask Him to give you khushūʿ. Ask Him to forgive your past shortcomings and help you become better.

You do not have to become the perfect Muslim today.

You simply have to become a Muslim who refuses to give up on becoming better.

And sometimes, that journey begins with something as simple as hearing the adhan, putting the phone down, making wudu and standing before Allah.

Five times a day, the door is open.

Walk through it.