Given what passes for leadership today, let’s look at what a real leader once said. This is from a speech by Nelson Mandela when he was rebuilding a country that had been torn apart by apartheid and racial hatred:

“During my political career, I have discovered that in all communities, African, coloured, Indian and white, and in all political organizations without exception, there are good men and women who fervently wish to go on with their lives, who yearn for peace and stability, who want a decent income, good houses, and to send their children to the best schools, who respect and want to maintain the social fabric of society.

“Good leaders fully appreciate that the removal of tensions in society, of whatever nature, puts creative thinkers on center stage by creating an ideal environment for men and women of vision to influence society. Extremists, on the other hand, thrive on tension and mutual suspicion. Clear thinking and good planning were never their weapon.”