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Every week, you’ll get insights and actionable steps to help you navigate personal growth and professional success.
Episode 407 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
What if the very thing that made you successful as a leader is now holding your team back?
You built your career by getting things done. When problems arose, you solved them. When projects stalled, you stepped in. When someone needed help, you were there.
And that ability to deliver results helped you earn your seat at the executive leadership table. But what happens when those same instincts begin working against you?
Episode 406 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
What if the biggest obstacle to modernizing policing has nothing to do with technology?
Body cameras. Drones. License plate readers. Artificial intelligence. There’s no shortage of technology promising to transform how police departments operate.
But what happens when we invest in better tools without investing in the people using them? That’s a question worth asking, not just for police chiefs, but for every leader in local government.
The last time someone disagreed with you at a council meeting, a staff check-in, or a public comment period…were you actually listening, or were you already building your response?
If you’re honest, it’s probably the second one. Most of us are. And according to journalist Kate Murphy, that habit is quietly costing us more than we think.
Episode 404 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
How many difficult council meetings could have gone differently if the right conversations had happened beforehand?
A council member challenges staff from the dais. An unexpected objection derails a carefully prepared proposal. Political tensions turn what should have been a productive meeting into an exhausting evening.
For many city managers, these situations feel like an unavoidable part of the job.
But what if they aren’t?
Episode 403 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
There’s a math problem every municipal leader knows all too well.
Your community wants better roads, safer neighborhoods, thriving businesses, beautiful parks, and reliable infrastructure. Your employees need competitive compensation, updated equipment, and adequate staffing. Your elected officials have priorities. Your residents have expectations.
And somehow, you’re supposed to make it all work with the resources you have.
The expectations keep growing. The resources don’t.
So what do you do?
Here’s a question worth chewing on: how much of what slows your organization down is actually a process problem and how much of it is a trust problem wearing a process costume?
Episode 401 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
Imagine arriving as the town manager of a community with 25,000 residents. Fourteen years later, that community is approaching 70,000. That’s not just growth. That’s an entirely different city.
And for Matt Mueller, Town Manager of Little Elm, Texas, the greatest challenge hasn’t simply been keeping up with new homes, roads, businesses, and public services.
It’s been making sure the organization responsible for serving that community doesn’t get left behind.
Episode 400 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
Every city and county has a culture. Some have spent thousands of dollars defining it. They’ve held retreats, identified core values, developed mission statements, and put inspirational words on the walls.
But here’s the uncomfortable question: If I spent a week watching your employees work, would their behaviors reflect the values your organization claims to hold?
Because culture doesn’t care what you say.
There’s a stat buried in Adam Grant’s research that should make every local government leader pause: the people who perform worst in any organization and the people who perform best are often the same personality type. Not opposites…the same type. What separates them isn’t talent, effort, or even intent. It’s one subtle habit most leaders have never been taught to examine.
Episode 398 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
Sponsored by Tyler Technologies
Growth is good. At least, that’s the assumption.
New subdivisions mean new residents. New development means new tax revenue. New roads and infrastructure mean progress.
But what happens 20, 30, or 40 years from now when all of that infrastructure needs to be replaced?
