How many of us have seen the film Invictus?
After his 27-year imprisonment and subsequent election as President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela faced the task of unifying a country divided by race. Only months since the end of Apartheid, divisions still existed between the country’s whites and blacks, something Mandela noticed during an international rugby match. He realized that his country’s black supporters were cheering the opposing team when their white “Springboks” came on to the field.
In 1995, after years of sporting isolation, South Africa hosted the Rugby World Cup. At that time Mandela’s supporters had demanded that the white-dominated rugby team be dismantled and renamed. But Mandela being the person he was, he resisted the temptation. He thought long and hard. He felt that if he did so, it would only create more fear and racial paranoia in the Afrikaner population. He instead decided to use the power of sport to unite the nation.
The Springboks’ World Cup campaign had started with an aspirational slogan that had a clear message: ‘One Team, One Country’. Mandela spoke at length with Pienaar, who was the captain of the rugby team, and told him how ordinariness can be lifted when the captain leads by example. He gave Pienaar a crumpled piece of paper that had inspired Mandela during his 27 years in prison during the apartheid regime.
The paper contained a poem by the English author William Ernest Henley. The speaker in the poem proclaims his strength in the face of adversity:
My head is bloody, but unbowed…
I am the master of my fate;
I am the captain of my soul.
The South African team went on to defy odds to make it to the final of the Rugby World Cup. But in the final they faced the might of the heavily-favored New Zealand team.
A few minutes before the final, as the South African team huddled together in the change room, there was a knock on the door. It was “Madiba”, as Mandela was fondly called. He wore a Springboks t-shirt and he shook Pienaar’s hand, then turned around to reveal that he wore ‘6’ on his jersey. “6” was the South African captain’s number.
Madiba’s gesture galvanized the whole team who went on to beat New Zealand in the final. That victory, Pienaar said, was not for the 60,000 fans in the Ellis Park stadium that day but for 43 million South Africans. Mandela used rugby to unite a divided nation.
After Nelson Mandela became President, one day he asked some members of his close security protection to stroll with him in the city, and then decided have lunch at one of its restaurants. They sat in one of the downtown restaurants and all of them asked for some food of their choice. After a while, the waiter brought them their requests. While they were waiting and talking about various issues, Mandela noticed that there was someone sitting right in front of his table, waiting for his food. He told one of his security personnel: ‘Go and ask that person to join us and eat with us’. The security person went and conveyed the same to the man. The man brought up his food and sat by Mandela’s side. While eating, his hands were trembling constantly. When everyone had finished their food, the man quietly and nervously left.
One of the security personnel said to Mandela: ‘The man was apparently quite sick. His hands trembled as he ate.’ ‘No, not at all,’ said Madiba. ‘This man was the guard of the prison where I was jailed. Often, after the torture I was subjected to, I used to scream and ask for a little water. The very same man used to come every time and instead of giving me water, he would urinate on my head. I found him scared, trembling, expecting me to reciprocate as I now hold the office of president…but this is not part of my character nor a part of my ethics!
The mentality of retaliation destroys states, the mentality of tolerance builds nations, organizations and families. The weak can never forgive…forgiveness is the attribute of the strong”.
Years ago, when I used to travel to Johannesburg, I met people who considered Mandela a traitor for not advocating and leading a campaign of revenge against the former apartheid perpetrators in South Africa. While thinking about this I realized that leaders, even when doing what they consider right and morally just, will not always be accepted by everyone. Leadership is a hard journey.
The lesson I draw from Mandela’s life is that leadership requires courage in the face of a humble acceptance of one’s inability to be perfect. What matters is you do your best.
Do you have any such stories about any current world leaders or corporate heads? Would love to hear any motivating incidents or comments
