Can you imagine this? David was a leader over his father’s flock before God anointed him as King over the children of Israel. That means if he had not been leading them well by getting them food and protecting them from the lion, wolf and bear, God will not call him. If you read the story of David well, you will notice that apart from protecting the animals, he was also a very good musician, which also gave him access to the king’s palace. That means he was so good at playing the instrument that somebody noticed him and recommended him to the king when he needed one. This Bible character (David) put the people of God first, which are the people of Israel. You remember when his father told him to take food to his brothers, not the battle field; he saw Goliath threatening the children of Israel and he had to step in because he remembered the victories that God gave him while on the field taking care of his father’s flock and Goliath was not going to be an exception.
So, leadership had been on his mind. Examine this: how will a man achieve his dream of becoming the best at his craft if he cannot bless the people around him with what he has? How will a woman who has the dream of feeding a nation achieve that when a kid on her street goes to bed without eating? You will not be able to do big things if you despise little things around you.
Leadership is what we are all born with, it does not matter how many people are under you; you are a leader. Being a parent shows that you are a leader. Your leadership ability will develop depending on how you develop the leadership skills in you. It is not having millions of people working for you that will show that you are a leader. If you have not mastered how to lead yourself, you will never become a very good leader. The most difficult person to lead is yourself; to become a person others will want to follow, you have to know who you are. People will not walk with you if you don’t know where you are going in life. No woman will commit her life to the hands of a man who does not know who he is or where he is going. If they are around you now, it is because they have not seen the right person; when the right person shows up, they will take their leave.
Woman, for your information, guys of this generation will not marry you if you don’t know who you are. If you notice what works on Twitter, people follow individuals who have something to say and they follow them because those individuals know who they are. ‘So You Call Yourself A leader?’ was the book I read that made me understand the importance of knowing who you are before you can become a good leader. The author, Ayo Fadumiye, also pointed out something that made a profound meaning. He said “taking the lead is not pursing after a title”.
Leadership does not begin when you rule or secure a post, title or position. Leadership has less to do with position than it does with disposition. Hear this: position does not make a leader, it is a leader that eventually creates position. Position will only give you an opportunity to display or deploy your leadership abilities. It is possible to be a manager in an organization and not be a leader. Being a manger is more of position, but being a leader is a mind-set. An exceptional manager in an organization will be a manager with leadership mind-set.
Leadership starts from your mind; as a person thinks, so he or she will become. You have the right attitude as a leader. Mahatma Gandhi and Adolf Hitler were leaders that people followed, but the difference between them was the kind of heart they had towards people. Knowing your purpose is another thing the author mentioned as a tool that will help anybody develop their leadership ability and the Responsibility Chapter gave me another insight into what my own responsibility in life is and what it should be. The book is an ebook and it has seven powerful chapters that will add to your knowledge on leadership or it might school you as a beginner to know how to start carrying out your leadership duties no matter where you find yourself. Don’t forget, ‘What Services Are You Providing?’ This is another chapter of the ebook that I will advise anybody who has interest in business to read.