Tyler Peoples
Mrs. Barber
10th Grade World Literature
30 August 2016
Ender’s Game and Mandela’s Way
	In Mandela’s Way, a book by Richard Stengel, it is shown that Nelson Mandela’s way of leading is one of the most important things that shaped him as a person.. His views also share a resemblance to those of Ender, a character from Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. The similarities between the ideals of Mandela and Ender are mainly based on how and when they empower others to lead. These very ways of guiding their peers are what make Mandela and Ender such effective and passionate leaders.
	Nelson Mandela demonstrated in Mandela’s Way that “as much as Mandela loved the limelight, he always knew that he had to share it.” He believed that “to get the best out of his own people, he had to make sure that they partook of the glory and, even more important, that they felt they were influencing his decisions” (Stengel 75). By giving his peers some form of influence in the way that things were handled, he could possibly get another look on how something was viewed by someone other than himself. These pure acts of wisdom are part of what made him such a wonderful leader. Ender also demonstrated this way of giving others the ability to make decisions. In order to succeed at winning battles, he had to get to know his teammates on a personal level and give them the confidence and skill to be able to respond intelligently to a problem. As Card said in Ender’s Game, “they [his team] also knew that Ender trusted them to do as they judged best when he gave them no orders. If their style of fighting were not right for the situation they were placed in, Ender would not have chosen them for that assignment” (Card 275). Ender, being the one who always wanted the best of his Army, made sure to empower them so that they can achieve their highest personal potential for themselves and the Army.
	Ender further uses this skill in order to forge trust between him and his Army. One particular soldier, Bean, was the best example of this occurring. When Bean was first added to Ender’s army, he acted very cocky and conceited. There was obviously a lack of trust between him and Bean. When Dragon Army wasn’t doing good enough in battles, Ender came to Bean to come up with new strategy: “I need you to be clever, Bean. I need you to think of solutions to problems we haven't seen yet. I want you to try things that no one has ever tried because they're absolutely stupid." When Bean wants to know why Ender would pick him when Bean obviously showed animosity towards him, Ender replied, “Because even though there are some better soldiers than you in Dragon Army -- not many, but some -- there's nobody who can think better and faster than you” (Card 198). Ender taking advice from Bean can be related to the saying of “Keep your friends close, and keep your enemies closer.” By doing this, Ender is able to receive a more extensive perspective. Bean’s discontent with Ender went away, and a bond between them became reality.
	The leadership value of leading from behind is all too prevalent in the characters of Ender Wiggin and Nelson Mandela. These two commanding styles were what they were known for. By Ender using this strategy, he was able to end up saving Earth from the foreign enemies. More importantly, this resolved a horrible act in the real world with Nelson Mandela ending the horrific practices of apartheid in South Africa. Leading from behind is something that can prove the difference of live versus death.