By W. Murathe

David of the Bible is a very inspiring character. He was a shepherd, singer, king, husband and father. He was very passionate in whatever he did and even though he made a lot of mistakes, he is referred to as a man after God’s own heart. We can derive a lot of lessons from his life. One of them is how we can be successful in any endeavor we attempt whether it is in business, education or even relationships. Here we compare his fight with the giant Goliath (1 Samuel: 17) with successful entrepreneurship.

An entrepreneur is someone who has possession of a new enterprise, venture or idea and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and outcome. Entrepreneurship usually involves seeking of profit but it may also involve a social undertaking.  An entrepreneur sees an opportunity and seizes it, introduces new products or services, and is resourceful in finding new ways of doing things.

The story of David and Goliath is about fighting a Philistine war champion who was over nine feet tall. The Israelites were all terrified of him and even the best fighters could not dare approach him. This included Saul the King who was the tallest Israeli.

From this story we can derive five requirements for the entrepreneur to succeed.

Alertness in identifying and exploiting opportunities

In his decision to fight Goliath, David saw an opportunity to make profit. The King had offered great wealth; his daughter in marriage; and exemption from taxes for the family of any man who managed to kill Goliath.

Ignoring discouragement and criticism

David’s eldest brother criticised him for daring to think of himself as a fighter. In his mind, he saw David’s prowess as only stretching to cover the shepherding of a few sheep. Saul also cautioned David about his youthfulness and lack of experience. Goliath looked at David’s youth and good looks and despised him. An entrepreneur cannot afford to listen to detractors who criticize, insult or threaten.

Courage and determination

David had a lot of courage to follow opportunity instead of scurrying security. His courage was borne out his faith in God and past achievements. He had fought and killed a lion and a bear and knew that God would also deliver him from the hand of Goliath. Entrepreneurs must be willing to go into battle. Fear, cowardice and phobias prevent people starting something. One must have a positive self image. Personal beliefs are critical. As President Franklin Roosevelt said, “What the mind of man can conceive and believe it can achieve.”  An entrepreneur must move forward after taking a calculated risk of abilities and resources. Like Obama you have to have the audacity. Yes, you can if you try

Find new ways of doing things: Be innovative.

David could not fight the Philistine by pitting his physical strength against him. He could not use the traditional fighting methods. When he tried Saul’s armour, he could hardly walk. He therefore decided to use what he knew. He was an expert at throwing stones with a sling so he used this and was able to beat the enemy.  Use the unique talents and resources God has placed in your hands. You do not need “Saul’s armour, spears and swords”. You have in yourself all it takes to be successful. You just need to find where your God given gifts are best suited.

Be prayerful and thankful.

Many people find success only to forget that it is due to God’s grace and favour and not because they deserve it more than others. In later days as King, David failed to take God into consideration in some critical decisions. He murdered Uriah so that he could marry his wife and was also not decisive in dealing with the sins of his children. Even though he repented and was forgiven, he suffered for these sins. You need to constantly renew your relationship with God and run the race successfully from beginning to end.

This article first appeared in the November 2010- January 2011 issue of Woman of Faith magazine. Copyright: Woman of Faith Magazine. All rights reserved. For comments write to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it