We continue in our journey of the study of the transformational leader called Daniel. Having seen Daniel’s impeccable reputation the question might understandably be asked “What were the secrets of this man’s character? What was the hidden source of his strength, his courage and faith”?

3 FACTORS IN CHARACTER

John Eddison points out three things that emerge which may help us explain the steadfastness of his later life.

First, Daniel was a man of principle. Eddison said “A principle is the response we make to an objective standard; while a prejudice is a subjective judgment or opinion. The wise leader distinguishes between the two, in himself as well as in other people; and while adhering to principles, he will not allow himself to be swayed by prejudice. He must be firm on matters of right and wrong, but flexible on matters of taste”. We have said in the past that you cannot lead a transformation if you are not a man of principle.

Second, he was a man of habit. The story of his life tells us he had the habit of praying three times a day; even under the threat of death he refused to give it up. Eddison said “If principles are the building of character, then habits are its scaffolding- the framework which gives cohesion and shape to a man’s life”. Men are known by the habits that guide them in life; we know that habits are one of the fundamental building blocks of destiny. The transformational leader knows this.

It has been said “Sow a thought and reap an action, sow an action and reap a habit; sow a habit and reap a character; sow a character and reap a destiny”. This statement is instructive; Eddison said “Reading the lives of great leaders, military and political, I find it is usually the case that they were men who, quite early in life, developed certain habits. There was a discipline about them. They lived well ordered lives, regulated by reference to certain fixed points to which they would try to adhere”.

THE FRIENDSHIP FACTOR

Third, Daniel was not just fortunate in his choice of friends, but he also acted decisively in selecting them. The choice of friendship and alliance is one of the most important choices the transformational leader will make. The people he surrounds himself with will determine, to a very large extent, whether or not he fulfills his destiny. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego who were close associates of Daniel, obviously shared the same convictions that he had; these were the same people that were threatened with death by Nebuchadnezzar but even that threat didn’t affect their resolve. They determined to do what was right, and they did what was right.

How often have we seen people that succumbed to the pressure of their “friends” to act in an unprincipled manner? The transformational leader understands that you really can never be more inspired than the quality of relationships you keep; so he looks for those uncommon friends that he can make the journey with. He finds them and walks with them as they with him. The transformational leader values these relationships because they are scarce.

Eddison said “Leadership in any field can be a lonely occupation. Society is shaped like a pyramid and those at the very top often have few to whom they can turn and confide everything, and with whom they can share responsibility; but those who can be trusted as chosen friends, whose sympathy, counsel and prayers can be counted upon, will help to keep the leader true to himself, to those he leads, and above all to God”.

THE STOCK IN TRADE OF POLITICIANS

I remember, years ago, while I was in the university, a classmate was running for an elective post in the Students’ Union; another classmate was also interested in the same office and this second classmate decided to mount a campaign of calumny against the first. I remember that by the time this fellow was through with his plot the other person was running from pillar to post trying to clear his name. The allegations against him, though largely fictitious, were so bad that he could have been rusticated if they were proven. Upon investigation it was discovered that not everything in the accusations was a figment of the antagonist’s imagination.
Many politicians dig deep in their bid to uncover the dirty secrets of their rivals, trading accusations and peddling rumors that are true in some cases. Most times these stories stick, largely because people are usually in the habit of believing bad things about those that are in the public eye.

There never seems to be a dearth of material for this sort of crusade; so what kind of leader is it that is cornered with allegations against his allegiance to God? They couldn’t pin him down with charges of prurient behavior, and there was no record of malfeasance. His official conduct was beyond reproach and there was no fault in his domestic life. He lived above blame at all times. He, in his own way, led a transformation.
Who is this guy? An angel? No, he’s the next transformational leader we will be studying.
DANIEL- The Statesman

TWIN VICES- COMPROMISE AND CORRUPTION
Daniel’s courage, moral as well as physical, has become proverbial. He exuded his like the transformational leader should. This man, an exile in a foreign country, involved himself in the affairs of that nation without compromise or corruption. A study of his life will show that he was a deeply spiritual man, and this is instructive; like John Eddison noted “It is a popular heresy in some quarters to suppose that a spiritually-minded Christian should play no part in the affairs of local or national government”.

Many churches have ended up denying society of some of the best technocrats, secular leaders, and those leaders that can lead a transformation by being very quick to draft promising leaders into the pastoral office and keep them in positions where they have little or no influence in society in the way that they should.
With more people trained in the Kingdom philosophy the church would have the ability to influence society and become the salt of the earth that the Lord designed it to be.

WHY HAVE SO MANY FAILED?

There have been Christians that have ventured into public office and have failed because of a lack of training and a lack of understanding of what was required of them. Christians in public office are faced with issues that most people know very little about; like Eddison said “they are tempted to compromise, perhaps because they often have to work with others who do not share their ideals and faith”.
However, in Daniel’s case we see that he took a clear stand right from the start. As a boy under the custody of the king of Babylon he was expected to eat the food that was served at the king’s table; he knew that this food was produced from animals sacrificed to pagan idols and heathen gods and so, along with his friends, he refused to partake of it. The transformational leader understands the danger of compromise.

STANDING IN THE FACE OF COMPROMISE

Just like Eddison notes “the next case came when he was called to interpret the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, and many years later the writing on the wall at Belshazzar’s feast. In both cases he could easily have tampered with the truth, and found a favorable interpretation instead of one which involved insanity in the one case and death in the other; but again Daniel refused to compromise. He told the whole unpalatable truth and faced the consequences.”
The next test he faced was when he refused to bow to the king’s edict to worship no other person but the king for 30 days (Dan. 6); he knew it could cost him his life; he nevertheless got involved in doing what he knew he was meant to do. Once again, Eddison notes “compromise is the great temptation of all who are engaged in secular forms of leadership.”

THE TWO FACED CLOCK

He continues in a most eloquent fashion “It is the principle of the double standard, one official and one private, which is so dangerous and has to be guarded against by leaders. Where I went to school there was a clock with two faces, one looking down the drive, the other into what we called the front quad. I was told that before I arrived the two faces told different times, and whether you were early or late for an appointment would depend upon which face you were going by”. Daniel had just one face; this was what made him stand out. How many leaders do we have that say what they mean and mean what they say today?

IN THE FACE OF CORRUPTION

Another major temptation the transformational leader must avoid is the temptation for corruption; like Eddison has said “It is probably true to say that men are more easily corrupted by favor than by fear, simply because greed is a commoner sin than cowardice. The man who is unmoved by threats may be persuaded to promote someone who has been generous to him rather than the person who deserves promotion on merit; or to prefer the man who has done him a good turn, or comes from the same school, or is connected by marriage.”
However, we see how Daniel comported himself; for example, when Belshazzar called him to give an interpretation of the writing on the wall Daniel could have cashed in on the opportunity; he knew the king would have been waiting for a favorable interpretation, and considering the fact that he was offered promotion and wealth he could just have taken advantage. He must have been living in retirement and relative obscurity at that time, yet his integrity and strength of character made him see that opportunity as not too good to pass up. He said “your gifts you may keep for yourself; or else give your rewards to another.” (Dan. 5:17)

MAGNANIMITY; THE LEADER’S HEART
Another quality of a transformational leader that David had which we must note is magnanimity. When faced with several opportunities to kill his enemy he chose not to take them and spared Saul against the advice of his friends. When Saul eventually fell on the battlefield, David lamented his demise without any hint of vindictiveness or personal victory. He never gloated over the fall of his enemy; rather he chose not to execute Saul’s son after he tried to take the throne by stealth, and he went further to kill those that murdered him. David had the presence of mind to seek the crippled grandson of Saul and take care of him properly.
He maintained this attitude while dealing with his over-ambitious and rebellious son Absalom, and it was this same magnanimity that made him embrace Saul’s commander-in-chief Abner. He even went further to recruit him and make him his general, much to the consternation of Joab.

THE 4TH LEVEL-HEBRON
This speaks a lot about how David adapted to the fourth level of leadership. In Hebron we see David step into this level; every transformational leader must pass through all these.

LEADING LEADERS
David showed at this stage that he had learnt how to be a leader of leaders; he came to see that the worth of a leader is not measured by how many people follow him; rather it is measured by how many people follow the people that follow him. This was the test of Hebron, how do you handle men who have thousands of followers when they come to you to submit?

These are usually “self-made” people who have their own level of success; they are not leaders in the making. They are already made, and you would need a special skill set to deal with them, particularly if you were not instrumental in their making. David found himself in such a condition; strong leaders with their followers came to him to hand over the kingdom of Saul (see 1 Chronicles 12:23-40), and he had to learn how to handle them.

The transformational leader knows at this stage that he will be leading strong men, not weaklings; so he must be strong and show a consummate understanding and skill in dealing with them. He must not fight with those he leads and should never create the perception that there is nothing they have to offer. Like Eddison has said “The good leader must be ready to applaud what is of value in the argument he has just demolished or the plan he has discarded, to restore with a smile the man he has rebuked, and cover up as best he can for the one who has spoken foolishly or acted wrongly.”

WHAT A LEADER MUST LIVE BY-HIS VALUES
The final thing we must note about David is the values and standards he lived by; David was a man who really cared about pleasing God. Whatever belief you espouse, whether Christian or Jew, Muslim or Sikh, you will agree that it is not possible for a person to lead without values. A belief and a trust in God will unlock a certain level of compassion for others and a conviction in principles. Without this it will be impossible for a person to become a transformational leader.

THE 5TH LEVEL-ZION
The last level of leadership we see David assume is the level at which the transformational leader becomes an institution. There are a number of people that have attained this level of leadership; there are men whose philosophies and ideologies have served as the mould in which a countless number of others pattern themselves; though these might not be classical examples of transformational leaders men like Mao Zedong left behind a philosophy referred to as Maoism. In Nigeria we have people that call themselves Zikists and others that call themselves Awoists; we also know that Ghandi has become a model for many other leaders and political activists that have adopted his principle of non-violence in staking their claims. We saw Martin Luther King jnr do the same thing; and have recently seen the Dalai Lama follow that policy while dealing with China. When we talk about David; in Israel, as in other parts of the world, this man is widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest leaders that ever existed. Till date, the most keenly contested piece of property in the world is still referred to as- the City of David. This man was one of the greatest transformational leaders that ever lived and he showed through his experience that he had a thorough understanding of the five levels of leadership.

THE LEADER MUST BE “ONE OF US”
Eddison said “Moses led from above. There was an almost Olympic dignity about him. David led from within, from among his people. He was the democrat while Moses was the autocrat. He was ‘The people’s king’”.
Along with his talents and dexterity, one of the things that stick out about David is his humanity; he never forgot his humble beginnings and sometimes he even seemed to boast about them. He realized he was a product of grace and that all he had received was more from God’s benevolence than a result of his hard work. Like someone has said “David knew the meaning of poverty, of loneliness and even of deprivation.”

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE LEADER’S HUMANITY
His humanity also meant that David was vulnerable, Eddison puts it in a phenomenal way, “Joseph seemed almost beyond the reach of temptation, but David possessed all those weaknesses which people so easily recognize in themselves. He could be dangerously indecisive. He was a prey to introspection. There were moments of pride, and there was the tragic episode concerning Uriah the Hittite which, even when judged by the standards of those days, remains inexcusable and, in such a good man, almost inexplicable.”
He had his own problems, just like every other transformational leader does, but like Eddison says “this very humanity won the hearts of people, for they saw a reflection of themselves. He was not too good to be true, which is what we feel about some leaders; he was sometimes too true to be good.”

WHAT IS THE MOST COMFORTABLE POSITION A LEADER MUST TAKE?
It was perhaps because he was so natural that people loved David. He always sought to be original; he always sought to be himself. The transformational leader cannot lead a transformation if he is not original. The transformational leader, like every other person that takes up a leadership position, is tempted to try on different postures and attitudes to see which one is most becoming of a leader.
The questions will seem to be, just like Eddison noted “Should he be dignified and condescending, at the risk of being thought pompous? Should he be free-and-easy, sociable and hearty, at the risk of being thought cheap and vulgar? It is very easy for a leader to fall into this kind of trap- to be over-concerned with the impression he is creating, and to adopt a carefully studied pose.”
The transformational leader does his utmost to avoid falling into this trap; Eddison continued “It was David’s naturalness which endeared him to people. He was a bad actor. He had to be himself, even if this meant failing to camouflage his weaknesses. People found common ground with him and felt at home.”

THE NEXT LEVEL OF LEADERSHIP: ZIKLAG
This was possibly the reason he attracted the people he attracted at Adullam. After he accepted this raw material in its most unrefined state he found himself thrust into the next level of leadership. David discovered that a lot of the people that followed him over the years had become very skillful and had developed their potentials but knew little about character.

CHARACTER: THE TEST OF ZIKLAG

In Ziklag, their character was tested; one of the most basic character traits a person must have in order to be a good leader is loyalty. When these men lost family members and personal possessions they blamed David and sought to kill him; in this moment of crisis David turned to God (see 1 Samuel 30:1-8). At no time was his loyalty to either God or his men in question. This is very important in ones quest to be a transformational leader.
At this third stage of leadership, the transformational leader is faced with skillful people who have no understanding of character traits like loyalty, dependability and commitment. His biggest responsibility at this stage is to teach them the importance of character and to instill these traits in them. David realized the immensity of this when he saw that the men had scant loyalty to God, very little to him and absolutely none to their comrades (see 1 Samuel 30:9-10, 17-24).

THE HOPE OF AUDACITY

Another thing that made David stand strong in the face of adversity was his courage. David was a man of audacity. Just how important is this in ones quest to be a transformational leader? Listen to John Eddison “Wars have proved, if they have proved nothing else, that courage is perhaps the most admired human virtue there is. There are races and even religions where adultery, theft and murder may in certain circumstances be condoned; but cowardice never. People will listen to the wise men, they will try to imitate the good, but it is only the brave, the physically and morally courageous, whom they will follow, come hell or high water.”
The transformational leader must have moral courage; he must have the courage to take risks, to make decisions, and even where necessary to overrule the opinion of others. This kind of courage is required in all who lead. Like someone has said “Brains alone will never make a man a good leader; he must have guts.”

MAKING PEOPLE COME TO YOU
There was also this other thing about David that every transformational leader must have; his people knew he had the ability to connect with them. One of the ways a leader can connect with his people is empathy. It is one thing to make people come after you; it is yet another thing to get people to come to you. David was able to attract people because he knew how to empathize with them. The people always felt that he understood them and that he was the kind of person they could trust with the hidden recesses of their heart, simply because he had been through much trouble himself.
Sometimes it is what you have been through that qualifies you to receive the trust and attention of others. Even Jonathan, who should naturally have desired the throne for himself, being the king’s heir, developed so much trust for David that he not only conceded the throne but protected David from the treacherous claws of his murderous father- Saul.

Like Eddison said “To some men in a remarkable way this gift is given. ‘I could tell him anything’ you hear someone say; and you know that he is referring to the kind of person who always has time, who never appears shocked and to whom the act of unburdening in itself, quite apart from any advice that may follow, will be a balm and a relief. The wise leader ‘never appears shocked’, not because he is insensitive to sin, or still less because he is blasé, but because the shock is absorbed by his knowledge of human nature. He knows the wickedness of which he himself is capable, and he can therefore listen with sympathy and understanding.”
This is the character of the transformational leader; he understands that if you can’t make a mistake you can’t make anything and so he gives his people the space to make mistakes and the time to learn from them.
In our next article we will finish our study of the life of David the transformational leader.

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE OR TOO TRUE TO BE GOOD?
No human being is infallible; we all have personal short-comings as human beings; you have yours and you know them, I have mine and I know them. However, one of the things that will put people off is a “leader” who is too good to be true. We have seen all too often political figures, religious leaders, sports personalities and just about any category of person in the public view who initially cut a larger than life image but eventually got found out.
In 2009 there was the well publicized issue of a governor in the United States who told family members he was going mountain climbing in the South of the country only to be in South America with his Argentine mistress. This was just after another governor was linked to an escort service. In sports we’ve had the almost impeccable façade of the biggest sports personality of the decade irreparably damaged when it was discovered that this suave, principled public figure was involved in lascivious orgies. Now I need you to understand that I am not criticizing anybody; all I am trying to point out is that the high expectation people have of their leaders is to a very large extent fuelled by the immaculate perception these leaders give of themselves.

THE HUMANITY OF THE TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADER
The transformational leader is not different from others in that he has his own challenges and personal shortcomings; however he is different from others in the sense that he lives within the scope of his humanity and does not seek to place himself on a pedestal. He does not conform to the expectations that other people have of him simply because he wants acceptance; it was John Eddison who said “deep down inside us all there is the desire to be liked, and one of the first marks of the good leader is that he will not allow himself to be unduly influenced by it.”

WHAT GIVES HIM FLEXIBILITY IN DEALING WITH MEN?
The transformational leader is one who is not shocked by the deeds and misgivings of others because he understands the human nature; this is not to say that he is unduly suspicious of the motives of others for this will be the opposite extreme, but he has learnt to use his head while dealing with himself and his heart while dealing with others. For many of us the reverse is usually the case.
The question might now be “Is there anyone like this? If there isn’t, could there ever be anyone like this?”
One of the most inspirational leaders the world has ever known; one of the greatest transformational leaders that have ever walked the face of this earth is our next subject.
DAVID- The Great King
One of the first things that stand out when we talk about David is the variety of gifts and talents that this man had. Apart from being a good shepherd boy and a skillful hunter he was also a poet, a songwriter, a musician, a capable soldier and a brilliant army commander and military strategist. Such was the diversity in his abilities that from a study of his life he seems to be the only king that doubled as a prophet (see Acts 2:29-30).

THE FIVE LEVELS OF LEADERSHIP
This is instructive because David’s life is a course in the study of not just transformational leadership but the five levels of leadership; and the first level of leadership is the level of self-leadership.

LEVEL ONE: BETHLEHEM

This was what David learnt at Bethlehem in the first phase of his leadership journey. This stage is the stage where the transformational leader gets to know himself, master his abilities and hone his skills.
This is also the point at which he learns self-governance, for no-one can lead others until he has first learnt to govern his emotions, desires and attitude. At this stage, the leader does not lead anybody but he seeks to prove himself faithful over the little responsibilities given to him just as David was faithful in his defense of the sheep. Here we see that every transformational leader begins in the place of obscurity where he must learn the things that will sustain him when he breaks into the limelight.
It was what David learnt in the place of obscurity that he used to dismantle a national problem when he had the opportunity to. Goliath was a national problem but it took one of the skills that David learnt in this stage to handle him. He learnt to use a sling.

LEVEL TWO: ADULLAM
Not too long after this David found himself in Adullam; this corresponded with a different stage of leadership for him. He had learnt all the things he was meant to learn in the stage of self-leadership so the time had come for him to lead people. It was here that David saw one of the basic foundations of transformational leadership- the true test of a transformational leader is in what those that follow him become.
At Adullam David met those that were disgruntled and he took them in (see 1 Samuel 22:1-2). The sort of people most of us would like to lead are people that are able to help themselves and then help us solve our own problems, however David was soon to learn that most good things will come to you in their raw material state; what you do with them at that point will determine how useful they will be to you in the future.

THE SOURCE OF THE LEADER’S AFFECTION
David’s passion to help people fulfill their destiny was one of the major factors that inspired affection for him in the hearts of those that followed him. If Moses inspired admiration, David inspired affection. It is the easiest thing in the world for people to love you if they realize you have their interests at heart. This was the case for David; he came to learn that it is almost never difficult to command the allegiance and the resources of a man if you will first answer the questions in his heart.
At this stage the transformational leader helps people discover their potentials, he helps them take responsibility, and see the direction they should follow in life. He realizes that the job of the leader is not to chart the course the people must follow as much as it is to assist them in finding that route through developing their innate abilities, their self-confidence, and the appropriate use of their intuition and the harnessing of all other prospects necessary to become leaders themselves.
David passed through these two stages very well, and his ability to learn from them was what made him succeed in the next three.