Walkabout Podcast with William Walker and Jono Brake

Invictus


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This week's episode discusses the film INVICTUS,

directed by Clint Eastwood, tells the inspiring and true story of how newly
elected President Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) joins forces with the captain
of South Africa’s rugby team, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon), to help unite their
country through sport and overcome economic and racial division in the wake of
apartheid.

In the film, Mandela

calls upon Pienaar to lead his team to greatness, joining forces to turn their
individual hopes — the president, to unite his country; the captain, to lead
the nation’s team to World Cup glory — into one shared goal with the motto “One
team, one country” and citing a poem that was a source of inspiration and
strength to him during his years in prison. It is later revealed that the poem
is “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley.

‘Invictus’

is a biographical sports drama film, based on the book ‘Playing the Enemy:
Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation’ by John Carlin. 

What is our purpose? Our purpose is to serve.


“You criticize without understanding. You seek only to

address your own personal feelings.
That is selfish thinking, Zindzi. It does not serve
the nation.” - Nelson Mandela

 

Modelling great leadership.

“Brenda

Mazibuko: You're risking your political capital, you're risking your future as our leader.

Nelson Mandela: The

day I am afraid to do that is the day I am no longer it to lead.”

 

“Forgiveness starts

here too. Forgiveness liberates the soul. It removes fear. That is why it is
such a powerful weapon.”

 

“If I cannot change when circumstances demand

it, how can I expect others to?”

 

Human Solutions - never lose sight of the fact the

tactics result in human solutions - they should come from purpose.

 

“Brenda

Mazibuko: So, this rugby is a political solution.

-

Nelson Mandela: It is a human solution!”

 

Inspiration - more than leading by example (model the

way and inspire shared vision)

 

“Nelson Mandela: How

do you inspire your team to do their best?

Francois Pienaar: By

example. I've always thought to lead by example, sir.

Nelson Mandela:

Well, that is right. But how do we get them to be better then they think they
can be? That is very difficult, I find. Inspiration, perhaps.”

 

The road to the

eventual world cup victory did not start with a powerful speech or a
cataclysmic moment - but with Francois Pinnear saying " I think he wants
us to win the world cup"

 

Questions

 

On an early morning

walk in the early days of the presidency, Mandela looks down at a newspaper
headline that questions whether he will be able to run a country. "It's a
legitimate question," he says, and they walk away.



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Walkabout Podcast with William Walker and Jono BrakeBy William Walker