1.
Have
faith in a Higher Being – God: Many successful leaders including; war time
leader Sir Winston Churchill, emancipator Abraham Lincoln, freedom fighter Dr.
Kwame Nkrumah, anti-racist campaigner Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, business
leader Thomas Edison, scientist Albert Einstein, have attributed their great
achievements to belief in a Higher Being. Most modern leaders also attribute
daily meditation as a booster to high performance and wellbeing. King David was
also a leader, who right from boyhood decided to put his confidence in a Higher
Being (God). The book of Psalm shows his relationship, trust and love for God.
2.
Back
faith with good character traits: King David was a man who had good
character traits to make him a great leader. He had integrity even as a shepherd
boy and was patient to wait for the right time to ascend Israel’s throne.
During his reign, he exercised authority with humility and was courageous to
face his enemies and lead the fiercest battles. His encounter with the couple
Abigail and Nabal and the poor in general showed a man, who was determined, resilient,
kind and generous. By forgiving King Saul and family as well as his rebelled
householders including Absalom, he showed a man with a heart to forgive. KD was
also a loyal man and maintained a good relationship with his God, friends and
team.
3.
Have
the right association and team: King David understood that he was an
average of the friends he had and this is seen by the associates he had throughout
his life. Challenge-takers, achievers and learners; in this case men of war,
like Abishai, Sibbechai, Elhanan and Jonathan, were his friends. These were men, whom like himself, killed a
giant each (KD killed Goliath and his friends, the four giants from Gath), to
make KD’s generation befitting of the title, 'Giant Slayers'. KD also consciously
and deliberately selected his team, who were known as the Three Mighty Men (his
core) and the Thirty Men.
4.
Get
a good understanding and situational application of leadership styles: Throughout the
chronicles of King David, it was clear he employed all the leadership styles
under different situations to lead his people. He delegated authority to his
men during wars. He participated in wars and battles. He was authoritative and
decisive during times when strong decisions and strategies needed to be
employed against their common enemies, depending mostly on his God and tried
and tested instincts.
5.
Love excellence: From a shepherd boy to the King of the nation he
exhibited excellence in all his dealings. Malcolm Gladwell in his book David
and Goliath chronicles how KD defeated Goliath using seemingly primitive
weapons of war at that time. He had confidence in his tried and tested weapons
of war. He saw opportunities in excelling at small things including defeating
of bears and lions when they came after his sheep during his shepherd boy days.
He played the string instrument with excellence which led to his being
recommended to King Saul
6.
Build systems within the ambit of the Law/ Constitution: King David
understood that for his ideals to outlive him, he needed to build systems which
were unbiased. He established systems championed by institutions headed by men
of competence. These institutional leaders were champions in their field of
expertise. This led to national security, wealth creation and national
development.
7.
And
finally develop a clear succession plan: King David ensured he had appointed
his successor before dying or leaving the reins of leadership. Mostly that is
the nemesis of great leaders. They do not groom their successors leading to
collapse of the systems painstakingly built during their tenure. KD ensured
that his successor was selected, groomed and crowned before he died.
These tips deduced from King David’s
leadership era teach us that we need not be perfect in order to excel but
continuous learning has the potential to make us excellent leaders who can
bring generational change to every facet we lead.
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