Biography of an Ethical Leader: Nelson Mandela Essay Example
Biography of an Ethical Leader: Nelson Mandela
April 8, 2012
Biography of an Ethical Leader: Nelson Mandela As we reflect on what it means to be an ethical leader, it is important to study those who represent what being an ethical leader is all about. In selecting an ethical leader to study more closely, what must one consider? My notion was to select someone that represented what an ethical leader is to the most people possible and read what that person has to say about ethical leadership. What about someone who has had many books and articles written about them? What about someone who has movies made about them? What about someone who has been awarded a Nobel Peace Prize? What about someone who may be “the closest thing the world has to a secular saint?” (Stengel, 2008). That person would be Nelson Mandela, who has become a household name throughout the world.
Admittedly, prior to this study, I had very limited knowledge about the life of Nelson Mandela. It was more the idea of the man and what he stood for in my mind that has always appealed to me. I knew of his stance against apartheid and racialism in South Africa. I knew that he had spent many years in prison because of his cause. I knew that he had won a Nobel Peace Prize and eventually became the first democratically elected and the first black president of the nation of South Africa. This had all happened prior to my becoming a young man and the subject matter came up on occasion during my middle and high school education. He was a truly inspirational figure. However, his greatest influence on me (at least prior to this study) was his stance on poverty.
I grew up under the yoke of poverty and that undoubtedly led to the last ten years of my professional life being dedicated to fighting the effects of poverty through the non-profit agencies that I have been employed with. Over that time, I even took part in and facilitated group programs called Out of Poverty (Lambert &
April 8, 2012
Biography of an Ethical Leader: Nelson Mandela As we reflect on what it means to be an ethical leader, it is important to study those who represent what being an ethical leader is all about. In selecting an ethical leader to study more closely, what must one consider? My notion was to select someone that represented what an ethical leader is to the most people possible and read what that person has to say about ethical leadership. What about someone who has had many books and articles written about them? What about someone who has movies made about them? What about someone who has been awarded a Nobel Peace Prize? What about someone who may be “the closest thing the world has to a secular saint?” (Stengel, 2008). That person would be Nelson Mandela, who has become a household name throughout the world.
Admittedly, prior to this study, I had very limited knowledge about the life of Nelson Mandela. It was more the idea of the man and what he stood for in my mind that has always appealed to me. I knew of his stance against apartheid and racialism in South Africa. I knew that he had spent many years in prison because of his cause. I knew that he had won a Nobel Peace Prize and eventually became the first democratically elected and the first black president of the nation of South Africa. This had all happened prior to my becoming a young man and the subject matter came up on occasion during my middle and high school education. He was a truly inspirational figure. However, his greatest influence on me (at least prior to this study) was his stance on poverty.
I grew up under the yoke of poverty and that undoubtedly led to the last ten years of my professional life being dedicated to fighting the effects of poverty through the non-profit agencies that I have been employed with. Over that time, I even took part in and facilitated group programs called Out of Poverty (Lambert &