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I was reading an old edition of Time Magazine about Nelson Mandela. It talked about how his rather complicated real name (Rolihlahla) actually means trouble maker...
It then went on to describe in detail his rules of leadership which the author had cobbled together from their conversations, old and new, and from observing him up close and from afar. It occurred to me they could also be used in a business context. They are mostly practical. Many of them stem directly from Mandela’s personal experience.
All of them are calibrated to cause the best kind of trouble…the kind that forces us to ask how we can make the world a better place.
1. Courage is not the absence of fear - it is inspiring others to move beyond it
Pretend, act fearless and this will inspire others. Other prisoners say that watching Mandela walk tall and proud through Robben Island kept them going for days.
2. Lead from the front – but don’t leave your base behind
Take the long term view and take the time to explain what you are doing time so people come with you. Distinguish tactics and principles. His unwavering principle was one man one vote and the overthrow of apartheid. Anything that worked towards that was a tactic.
3. Lead from the back - and let others believe they are in front
He watched his tribal king uncle, Jongintaba, call all the court together in a circle, listen to them speak and only then put his views forward. The role of the Chief is not to tell people what to do but to form a consensus. The trick of leadership is allowing yourself to be lead too. “It is wise", he said, ”to persuade people to do things and help them think it was their own idea”.
4. Know you enemy - and learn about their favourite activity (favourite sport)
Mandela learnt Afrikaans from as far back as the 1960’s. He knew that it would help him understand their worldview, to be able to communicate with them. It was also strategic - by understanding their language he could understand their strengths and weaknesses and so devise his own tactics accordingly. It was a way of ingratiating himself with the enemy, everyone from PW Botha to the prison guards was impressed by his knowledge of the language and their history and their sport and he could compare notes about rugby players.
5. Keep your friends close - and your rivals even closer
He is a charming man and he uses this. Those he didn’t fully trust he still invited to dinner and to meetings in his home. Mandela believes that embracing rivals is a way of controlling them. He is an optimist and also recognises the way to deal with those he doesn’t trust is to neutralize them with charm.
6. Appearances matter - and remember to smile
Mandela carries himself with the regal air of a chiefs son. When he smiles it is as if the sun has come out on a cloudy day. We sometimes forget the historical correlation between physicality and leadership – there is no doubt that appearance can and does enhance your cause. More important than anything is his dazzling smile, beatific all inclusive, symbolizing his lack of bitterness and the potential to triumph - the happy warrior.
7. Nothing is black or white
He is a believer in ‘Both/ And’ as opposed to Either /Or. Decisions are complex, there are always competing factors. To look for simple explanations is the bias of the human brain but it doesn’t correspond to reality. Nothing is ever as straightforward as it appears. Mandela’s calculation was always ‘What is the end that I seek and what is the most practical way to get there?’
8. Quitting is leading too
Knowing how to abandon a failed idea, a failed task, or relationship is often the most difficult kind of decision a leader has to make. He learnt to accept things with humility, not to sulk and not blame others. Perhaps Mandela’s greatest legacy to Africa is the fact that he stood down, he was determined to set a precedent for all who followed him. Leaders lead as much by what they choose not to do as what they do do.
Taken from Mandela, His 8 lessons of leadership. R Stengel. Time July 2008 |
