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1-Page Summary of Mandela’s Way

Overview

Many have wondered how Nelson Mandela, despite being in prison for 27 years and facing many setbacks, was able to maintain his love and compassion. Perhaps most people would become bitter after such a long time. However, not Mandela. How did he do this?

This book will show you how Nelson Mandela became the leader of South Africa and what he learned from his time in prison. It will also tell you about some key principles that he lived by and why he treated people the way that he did.

Big Idea #1: Courage is not fearlessness. Courage is learning to cope with fear.

Courage is an important quality. However, none of us are born with courage. Nelson Mandela learned at a young age that he was not born courageous and had to learn how to deal with fear.

Dealing with our fears is a choice. Nelson Mandela made that choice when he was 16 years old. At the time, he participated in an initiation ceremony for Xhosa boys, which included circumcision. He stood up to be circumcised and shouted “I am a man!” after being cut but it took him some time before he could shout those words out loud because of the pain from his injury.

Mandela’s first experience in public speaking was a disaster. He froze and could barely speak, but that failure taught him that he had to conquer his fear of public speaking. Pretending to be brave is one way of conquering your fears. Mandela became a great leader by always appearing courageous, even when he was afraid. One example is the time when Mandela took a small plane ride with one of his bodyguards, and an engine failed during their flight landing them in danger. The bodyguard said that Mandela remained calm while they were in danger because he pretended not to be scared at all!

Courage is a choice. That means that every person can be courageous and not just the people who risk their lives. Mandela was able to hide his fear, which was comforting for those around him and inspired others by showing them how they could be courageous as well.

Big Idea #2: When faced with difficult circumstances, learn to think and act in a calm, measured way.

It’s admirable for a person to be in control of their emotions and act appropriately under stressful situations. Leaders are expected to remain calm during tense times, so it’s important that they learn how to do this.

Mandela was a measured man. He knew that being a leader meant controlling your emotions, even when you’re faced with difficult situations. For example, Mandela spent 27 years in prison and learned to control his anger during those years. When he became president of South Africa in 1994, he found himself facing another challenge—the murder of Chris Hani, an anti-apartheid activist. The situation could have led to civil war if the people didn’t show self-control and discipline. Mandela spoke calmly on TV and urged everyone else to do the same so they wouldn’t descend into chaos like neighboring countries had recently done (e.g., Rwanda).

When Mandela was released from prison, he had a chance to deliver a speech at a rally. Some people criticized the speech, saying it was boring. But Mandela didn’t care about those criticisms because he knew that being rational and not rousing the crowd is always better than getting them worked up.

Big Idea #3: No matter what, stick to your core principles – everything else can be negotiated.

Few people realize how pragmatic Mandela was. He would constantly re-think his strategies and approach things from different angles, but he had some principles that were non-negotiable. For example, when he was young he walked out of school in protest over a minor issue involving food quality. Although it may have seemed noble to him at the time, it cost him an important opportunity to get an education that could help him with bigger issues like national injustice later on in life. Later on, as a wiser man, Mandela realized this and laughed about his earlier actions.