Former Anson resident writes leadership book

WADESBORO — In “Wild Approach Leadership: Ideas on Leadership From a Wild Life,” author David Viker details lessons learned and mistakes made from his life experience in government wildlife management, youth sports coaching, and parenthood.

Viker is a former Anson County resident who penned the “Pee Dee Refuge Report” for the Anson Record while he worked as the assistant manager at the Pee Dee National Wildlife Refuge in the late ’90s. His oldest son was born in Anson as well.

“The process was long, circuitous, but in the end, really rewarding,” Viker said about the eight year process of writing his first book.

As a young graduate with a degree in wildlife ecology, Viker had a natural affinity for other people.

“While other people were sharpening their skills in duck identification and how to trap deer, I started diving into Stephen Covey (author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People),” Viker said. “In my field, most people wanted to be out in the woods. I wanted to help people.”

That didn’t mean Viker was successful at first, who said he wasn’t adequately prepared to lead others and performed terribly at his first job of managing just a few individuals.

“Often a book is, ‘Here’s why I was so successful,’” Viker said. “My book is ‘Hey, here’s all my mistakes. Learn from them.’”

For more than a decade, Viker led 800 employees and managed a $120M in annual budgets for a wildlife conservation agency.

In one anecdote from the book, Viker recalls his son’s transformation from a shy follower to a marching band leader.

“When I hear someone say that so-and-so is “a born leader,” it aggravates me for two reasons: (a) the thought of someone anointed with an unearned advantage, and (b) the lack of recognition of others’ hard work to become the good leaders they are,” writes Viker.

The book is written in story-form, with anecdotes that are easy to remember.Wild Approach Leadership draws inspiration from over 100 leadership books. Viker said that while many leadership books are borne from one area of expertise or success, his book was written with a wider audience in mind.

“I aimed to write a book that would be as helpful as a partner, a parent, or someone leading at work,” Viker said.

Wild Approach Leadership was released this week. It’s available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million. Other stories in the book include coaching undefeated and winless sports teams, trapping a wild bear and serving as a marching band booster club president despite no musical experience.

Viker, who has three children born in three different decades, currently resides in Georgia.

“[This book is for] anyone who realizes they haven’t figured it out yet,” Viker said. “But, they’re willing to learn from their mistakes and others’ mistakes.”