HaltingWinter

Local government is full of good reasons for doing things the way they've always been done.

But every once in a while, someone needs to ask:

Who says we have to do it that way?

That question runs throughout my conversation with Marketa Oliver, City Administrator of Bondurant, Iowa.

We talk about what happens when leaders give their teams permission to experiment, why mistakes are part of innovation, how Bondurant is using creative economic development to navigate tremendous growth, and why local government leaders need to pay attention to tools like AI rather than fear them.

Marketa is one of those leaders who seems to constantly be asking, “What could this become?”

And I think we need more of that thinking in local government.

Watch Episode 389:

389: Marketa Oliver: Who Says We Have to Do It That Way? Marketa Oliver: Who Says We Have to Do It That Way?Episode 389 of ...

“Who says we have to do it that way?”

It’s a question more local government leaders may need to ask.

On the newest episode of The HaltingWinter Podcast, Marketa Oliver, City Administrator of Bondurant, Iowa, joins Seth Winterhalter to talk about creativity, growth, innovation, technology, and building a culture where people have permission to try something new.

Because sometimes serving a community better starts with being willing to question the way it’s always been done.

Episode 389 is Live: https://haltingwinter.com/hwp-marketa-oliver/
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Sponsor Highlight: Tyler Technologies, Inc.
AI is moving fast, and local government doesn’t need more hype. It needs tools that actually help people do their jobs better. Explore Tyler Technologies’ practical AI resources at TylerTech.com/WINTER.

Who Says We Have to Do It That Way? Halting Winter

You can know exactly what needs to be done and still fail to bring people with you.

That’s one of the lessons Mark Jackson has learned during more than three decades as City Administrator of Story City, Iowa.

In the newest episode of The HaltingWinter Podcast, Mark and Seth talk about why local government leadership requires more than technical expertise. It takes communication, judgment, strong relationships, humility, and the willingness to make decisions even when you don’t have perfect information.

Episode 388 is Live: https://haltingwinter.com/hwp-mark-jackson/
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Sponsor Highlight: Tyler Technologies, Inc.
The goal isn't more technology. It's giving good people better tools to do their work. See how Tyler Technologies is helping local governments create capacity through practical, secure AI at TylerTech.com/WINTER.

You Can Be Right and Still Get It Wrong Halting Winter

Ever close out a genuinely good year…budget gaps closed, positions filled, a tense council relationship finally stable…and still feel like you're behind?

You're not imagining it, and it's not about work ethic. This week's MLDC Book of the Week, “The Gap and the Gain” by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy, explains why local government leaders rarely feel "caught up,” even when they're doing everything right.

We've got the full breakdown on the blog. But the real work…five days of insights applied directly to council dynamics, budget cycles, and the day-to-day weight of this job, plus a conversation guide built for your next leadership meeting…that's inside MLDC.

Read the Blog: https://haltingwinter.com/mldc-gap-and-the-gain/
Join the MLDC now for 2027 and unlock the rest of 2026's content as a Bonus: haltingwinter.com/mldc

Why Winning Doesn't Feel Like Winning Halting Winter

One of the smallest things a local government leader can do might completely change the trajectory of someone's career.

The crazy idea: Let them follow you around for a day.

That's essentially how Katie Beemer discovered city management.

She reached out to a local manager, Christine Burns, and asked if she could job shadow her. No elaborate internship program. No months-long commitment.

Just one day.

That experience helped Katie discover a profession she didn't even know existed and eventually led her to becoming City Administrator of Fennville, Michigan.

We spend a lot of time talking about the local government workforce crisis. We need internships, fellowships, recruiting strategies, and better pipelines.

But maybe we also need more leaders willing to simply open the door.

There could be a future city manager sitting in a college classroom right now who has absolutely no idea this profession exists.

Katie and Seth talk about that journey and much more on Episode 386 of The HaltingWinter Podcast.

📺 Watch Here: https://youtu.be/NcmrEec5EQo?si=lnvZaEIqXTxKhzHL
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Sponsor Highlight: Tyler Technologies, Inc.
The goal isn't more technology. It's giving good people better tools to do their work. See how Tyler Technologies is helping local governments create capacity through practical, secure AI at TylerTech.com/WINTER.

386: Katie Beemer: Stop Waiting for Someone Else to Solve It Katie Beemer: Stop Waiting for Someone Else to Solve ItEpisode 386...

Some of the biggest challenges facing our communities don't come with easy answers.

On Episode 386 of The HaltingWinter Podcast, Katie Beemer, City Administrator of Fennville, Michigan, shares what she's learned about creating momentum when a community gets stuck.

Her approach? Keep asking questions. Find the people who can help. Use the resources around you. And don't wait for someone else to solve the problem.

It's a conversation about persistence, relationships, community leadership, and the incredible impact of local government.

Listen Here: https://haltingwinter.com/hwp-katie-beemer/
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Sponsor Highlight: Tyler Technologies, Inc.
Less time buried in repetitive tasks. More time serving people. Explore how Tyler Technologies is helping local governments put AI to work where it can actually make a difference at TylerTech.com/WINTER.

Stop Waiting for Someone Else to Solve It Halting Winter

One of the pressures of becoming a city or county manager is the feeling that you’re suddenly supposed to know everything.

You don’t, and you shouldn't.

Kevin Mizikar made an important distinction during his conversation with Seth Winterhalter: as his career progressed, his role increasingly became facilitating the answers rather than providing them.

Your engineer knows things you don't know.
Your finance director knows things you don't know.
Your public works director, planner, police chief, HR director, clerk, and department heads all bring expertise you don't have.

The manager's value isn't knowing more than all of them.

It's bringing those people together, asking good questions, translating complexity, creating alignment, and helping the organization arrive at the best answer.

That’s a very different definition of leadership.

Kevin and Seth spend a lot of time unpacking this on Episode 385 of The HaltingWinter Podcast.

Watch Here: https://youtu.be/e7oNEwdQOjo?si=kcBTLY01r87RUdQf
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Sponsor Highlight: Tyler Technologies, Inc.
The goal isn't more technology. It's giving good people better tools to do their work. See how Tyler Technologies is helping local governments create capacity through practical, secure AI at TylerTech.com/WINTER.

www.youtube.com

Are you still doing instead of leading?

Many local government leaders attain management roles because they were exceptionally good at doing the work.

Then the job changes.

In Episode 385 of The HaltingWinter Podcast, Seth Winterhalter talks with Kevin Mizikar, Town Manager of Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, about making the transition from individual contributor to organizational leader.

They explore what it looks like to develop people instead of simply solving problems yourself, connect employees to the organization’s strategic priorities, and continue investing in your own growth as a leader.

Listen Here: https://haltingwinter.com/hwp-kevin-mizikar/
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Sponsor Highlight: Tyler Technologies, Inc.
There's plenty of hype around AI. But where can it actually make the work of local government better? Explore practical AI resources built specifically for the public sector at TylerTech.com/WINTER.

haltingwinter.com

Municipal leadership can be a lonely job.

You can have a great council, a great staff, a supportive community, and still find yourself carrying decisions and challenges that very few people around you truly understand.

Over the past two years, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how we can make the Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC) better.

And after hundreds of conversations with municipal leaders across North America, I keep coming back to the same thing:

Leadership development opportunities are abundant. Trusted relationships with people who understand your role are much harder to find.

So that’s where we’re taking the MLDC in 2027.

At the center of the new MLDC are small, hand-selected Mastermind cohorts of municipal leaders in similar roles who will meet throughout the year to talk about life, leadership, and the challenges they’re actually facing.

These aren’t webinars. There’s no canned curriculum.

It’s a group of peers who know your name, understand your role, challenge your thinking, and help you navigate the year.

We have separate cohorts for:
• City & County Managers/Administrators�
• Assistant/Deputy Managers & Administrators�
• Department Heads & Directors

Applications for the 2027 MLDC Masterminds are now open through October 31st.

Learn more and apply at: www.haltingwinter.com/mldc.

Deeper Relationships. Better Conversations. Stronger Leaders.
Because leadership shouldn’t be carried alone.
www.haltingwinter.com/mldc

Municipal Leadership Development Circle | 2027 Halting Winter

Nobody teaches you how to feel about your leadership role in local government. They teach you the budget process, the personnel rules, the council procedures, and then you're on your own for the part where a resident yells at you in a parking lot and you have to go home for dinner twenty minutes later as if nothing happened.

This week's MLDC book is “Atlas of the Heart” by Brené Brown. It's about naming what you're actually feeling instead of filing everything under "stressed" or "fine." Turns out that matters more than you'd think.

More Here: https://haltingwinter.com/mldc-atlas-of-the-heart/
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If you lead in local government and you're not an MLDC Member, join us for the final months of 2026 and unlock a special bonus: haltingwinter.com/mldc

The Weight No One Warned You About Halting Winter