LESSONS FROM THE CHARACTER OF NELSON MANDELA

What is character made of?

Character is the sums total of mental and moral qualities that make a person distinct from others. Character is therefore a collection of stable and distinctive qualities that are referred to as character traits. One trait may not be enough to completely describe the character of an individual; usually a collection of character traits may be needed.

There are over 30 traits already described. Sometimes different words may be used to describe the same character trait or

sometimes some traits may be fragments of another larger trait. For example, I believe honesty to be a fragment of integrity. A collection of several character traits may enable one to perform certain tasks or careers. For example, character traits that make a political leader may not entirely be similar to those that make a doctor.

Below are six lessons I believe we can all learn from the character Nelson Mandela .  

a)      Sacrifice.

A sacrifice is something that you give up: usually for the sake of a better course. Nelson Mandela had found a greater course that became more important than his own life and happiness. He had a relentless dedication to activism which took a toll on his family life and happiness. He spent 27 years of his life in jail for a course that he believed in. in his famous speech ‘I am prepared to die’ he confirms his willingness to make a sacrifice, he says; “……….I have dedicated my life to this struggle of African people……………….but my lord, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.” He was willing to sacrifice his own life in exchange for a free and democratic South Africa.

b)      Vision

Vision is purpose in pictures, it is an optimal desired future state that provides guidance and inspiration to what one wants to achieve. Nelson Mandela had a vision which he explicitly expressed in his speech. He said; “…………I have cherished the ideal of democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony and with equal opportunity. It is an ideal I hope to live for and see realized.”  A vision provides a course for which one lives. It also gives meaning to the course and makes every struggle and pain seem easy.

c)       Faith

Faith is complete trust and confidence in a person or course. It would sound like stupidity but Nelson Mandela in his defence made a passionate appeal in an apartheid court before and obviously biased judge and still stubbornly believed that he could move that judge and have his case considered. In the face of brutal white supremacy he still had faith in white people. Mandela had complete faith in his course; he put his life on the line to see his vision come to life. He had faith that he would get to convince people to change.

d)      Persuasiveness

To persuade is to make someone do or believe in something by giving them a good reason to do so. Nelson Mandela was good at this. After having persuaded an apartheid regime to let Africans vote, he had a bigger problem to deal with after he became president. The black majority wanted   nothing but revenge against the whites. Mandela devised several ingenious ways to put them on a course to reconciliation including using rugby games. He knew how to make people do and believe what t hey did not believe.

e)      Integrity

Integrity is the quality of having a strong moral principal. It is well documented that while he was at prison the then president PW Botha tried to have Mandela released in exchange for denouncing his armed struggle. Despite the fact he had been so ill treated at the prison for over 20 years, Mandela flatly rejected the offer and several other deals that came thereafter. His strong principles are the reasons why he became such an influential and respected African leader.

f)       Tolerance

Tolerance is a fair objective and permissive attitude towards those whose opinions, believes and practices differ from one’s own. Mandela was an extremely tolerant person. Despite having been mishandled by the apartheid government, he was still able to sit down with his aggressors in a bid to try and move South Africa forward.

I have not described all character traits that can be attributed to Nelson Mandela but I still believe that every leader and worker can gain by trying to cultivate in them such traits. Whereas some traits are generic, most character traits such as tolerance, humility, hard work, honesty, forgiveness, honour, patience and self control can be learned. Resolving to develop such traits may add value to your character as a person.