Deb Dutta

In one of my recent intercontinental flights, I happened to watch Clint Eastwood’s Invictus. I have since etched in my mind this memorable exchange between Matt Damon’s Francois Pienaar character, the captain of Springboks rugby team and President Nelson Mandela, brilliantly played by Morgan Freeman. President Mandela invites Pienaar for tea after a dismal performance by the Springbok’s against England one year ahead of the Rugby World Cup. He asks Pienaar, “What is your philosophy of leadership. How do you inspire your team to do their best”. Pienaar, the natural leader says, “I lead by example. I do not expect my team to do anything that I am not prepared to do myself.” President Mandela keeps probing, “How could your team be made to do better than what they think they can do? Perhaps it is through inspiration … by inspiring each individual to greatness where nothing less will do – by using the work and success of others. To build our nation we need to exceed our own expectations.”

President Mandela delivers ‘the inspiration’ to Pienaar in the form of a Victorian poem he had read while in prison. Francois Pienaar and his team respond to the President’s challenge by winning the World Cup for South Africa! President Mandela uses the same inspiration to stand tall, extract a nation from the throes of post apartheid infighting and transform it into a developed nation of equal opportunity for people irrespective of cast, color or creed! Both individuals demonstrate incredible Continue reading »