Mandela’s Mission and Vision

Mandela’s Mission and Vision

Nelson Mandela was an astonishing leader because of his dedication, inspiration, and his vision of change. He was one of the leaders to put an end to segregation rule of Africa and the first black president of the country. His main goal, as president, was to unify Africa. He made sure that everyone clearly knew and understood his goal of equality, and took all the steps possible in order to reach that goal. He encouraged the actions of others, and motivated others towards acceptance of people that are different. From integrating his own staff, to the desire for the rest of Africa to get along with people of different races, Mr. Mandela made sure he accomplished his goal as much as possible. Therefore, he modeled the way, inspired a shared vision, enabled others to act, challenged the process, and encouraged the heart, which are all five parts of leadership. All these qualities, and his peaceful tactics for dealing with the issue, are some of the many reasons why Nelson Mandela was such a great leader. Nelson Mandela had a vision that Africa would end racial segregation and every man would be free and equal in the perceptiveness of the country. It was this vision that drove him to great lengths, and it was this vision that sustained him through his hardest days in prison. Mr. Mandela was arrested and jailed because he was accused of treachery by the South African government. In 1944, he joined the African National Congress (ANC), which defied the South African ruling party 's apartheid policies. The government gave him a life sentence in prison, for assuming he was plotting to overthrow the government by violence. Throughout his 27 years in prison, Mr. Mandela continuously acted as a great political leader to his people, communicating his vision even while being incarcerated. He became a political icon and the world affiliated South Africa 's freedom with his personal freedom. On his release from prison, his people faced a new challenge: how to create interracial culture and let past indiscretions go. This is how Mr. Mandela excelled as a moral leader. He spread his new vision into the souls of the South African people. Vengeance would not bring South Africa the much longed for prosperity, he said. He fortified the colored South Africans to reunite with the White South African, and forgive the past. He inspired the people of South Africa to learn about each other, to compromise and create a nation where race and color did not matter. This was when the “Rainbow Nation” came about.
As the great leader that he was, he realized that he needed to take an extreme step, and met with the South African president to discuss his release from prison and his aspiration to switch the nation to a democracy. Mr. Mandela was prosperous, and upon his release, his people elected him president, the first democratic leader of South Africa (Brink, 1998). During the course of his battle against segregation and helping to bring democracy to South Africa, Mandela embraced a democratic leadership style (Johnson and Johnson, 2006), “Democratic leaders set policies through group discussion and decision, encouraging and helping group members to interact, requesting the cooperation of others” (p. 182).
Some of the qualities of a good leader are a strong clear vision and the ability to convey it. “One needs to understand where you want to lead your people, how you plan to get them there, and the ability to communicate this destination to your people.” Nelson Mandela was able to do that commendably. He was an accomplished and pervasive leader. He naturally exhibited all types of leadership qualities, which is what led him to his success. One of the most commendable qualities of Nelson Mandela’s leadership was that he was not frightened to express his

Mr. Mandela was arrested and jailed because he was accused of treachery by the South African government. In 1944, he joined the African National Congress (ANC), which defied the South African ruling party 's apartheid policies. The government gave him a life sentence in prison, for plotting to overthrow the government by violence.

Work Cited
Brink, A. (1998). Nelson Mandela. Retrieved 2013 April 20, from
Johnson, D.W., & Johnson, F.P. (2006). Joining together group theory and group skills (9th ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Stengel, R. (1994). The making of a leader. Retrieved 2013 April 17, from

Cited: Brink, A. (1998). Nelson Mandela. Retrieved 2013 April 20, from Johnson, D.W., & Johnson, F.P. (2006). Joining together group theory and group skills (9th ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. Stengel, R. (1994). The making of a leader. Retrieved 2013 April 17, from