This may have been Mandela's greatest strength. His composure while serving his prison sentence, and forgiveness upon his release, inspired millions to look past the indignities of the past and envision as racially tolerant South Africa. Morne du Plessis comments on the Springbok's inspiration ".but the enormity of the man we had behind us, and the power that emanated from him and through him,, struck me as a little unfair." This was echoed by Joel Stransky "The impact he had on the players was immeasurable. That day was a fairy tale come true, with Mandela at the heart of it. He won it for us." (Carlin, Playing the Enemy, pages 248-249).
Intellectual stimulation takes place where leaders create a 'buy in' among followers as they internalize the goals of the larger organization, assume an accountability for the success of the group and seek to come up with their own solutions to contribute to the group's success. This is evident in the comments of Constand Viljoen at the opening of the rugby World Cup when the he watches the crowd chanting ˜Nelson, Nelson, Nelson'. At that moment he realizes the citizens of South Africa (or at least 62,000 of them in attendance that day) have internalized the cause of racial reconciliation and as Carlin states, "the Afrikaner people were transferring the responsibility from the general to themselves, making his devotion to Mandela their own " (Carlin, Playing the Enemy, page 251).
No matter how large the leadership undertaking or the number of followers involved, true transformational leadership requires individualized consideration. There needs to be a two way process of communication and a feeling among followers that their own individual needs are understood and are being met. Mandela demonstrated this as one by one he moved through the ranks of the South African prison system and government winning people over. Carlin's description of Mandela individually introducing each of his jail guards to his lawyer, George Bizos, and the effect it had on them is an excellent example.