{"id":39885,"date":"2018-01-16T04:45:40","date_gmt":"2018-01-16T10:45:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michaelhyatt.com\/?p=39885"},"modified":"2018-01-16T04:45:40","modified_gmt":"2018-01-16T10:45:40","slug":"organizational-unity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fullfocus.co\/organizational-unity\/","title":{"rendered":"What Martin Luther King Jr. Teaches Leaders Today"},"content":{"rendered":"

Seeking a working definition of leadership is one thing, but seeking examples of defining leaders can be more valuable. We embrace the familiar adage, \u201cmore is caught than taught,\u201d because many of us are visual learners. We have to see leadership in action and not just read about it or talk about it. Defining leaders are men and women who have a knack for doing what is right. They also do what they say and they say what they do. Words and deeds must match up for a leader\u2014and when they do, you will have a change agent to contend with.<\/p>\n

This is why so many people consider Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to be one of the most defining leaders of his time, or anytime for that matter. This Baptist minister, hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, walked the talk and talked the walk when it came to engaging America in the quest for civil rights through nonviolent passive resistance.<\/p>\n

Consider how these five timeless principles of leadership, which Dr. King exemplified, are able to span generations and how they can be applied by any person in any organization. Following Dr. King\u2019s example, we must:<\/p>\n

1. Be prepared for our moment<\/h3>\n

Martin Luther King grew up in a home where education and community involvement were highly prioritized. While concluding his doctoral studies, he accepted the pastorate of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. From this small church, a twenty-six-year-old King was thrust onto the national stage to lead the historic Montgomery Bus Boycott. The older ministers in the city found King to be the most qualified candidate to lead the burgeoning movement. It\u2019s been said that success happens when preparation meets opportunity, and since none of us know specifically when a life-changing opportunity will present itself, it would behoove us all to be ready.<\/p>\n

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Being prepared for your moment allows you to be spontaneous without being sloppy. When what was arguably Dr. King\u2019s personal apex during his \u201cI Have a Dream\u201d speech in 1963, he deviated from his written notes when Mahalia Jackson beckoned for him to tell America about the dream he had. For a person to speak extemporaneously as King did at that pivotal moment in history, and to do so with ease and excellence speaks to how well prepared he actually was. Apparently, that speech never had an official title, but once he finished climbing to heights of unmatched oratorical prowess, everyone knew what to call it.<\/p>\n\t\t