Episode 186 of The HaltingWinter Podcast
(Part 1 of 5: "Turn the Ship Around" Series)
Episode Title: Why Giving Up Control is the Boldest Leadership Move You Can Make

What if the key to stronger teams isn’t more control, but more trust?

In this opening episode of our 5-part series on Turn the Ship Around by David Marquet, Seth Winterhalter unpacks the transformative concept of “leader-leader” culture. Instead of the traditional “leader-follower” model, where a single person gives orders and everyone else executes, Marquet proposes something radically different: giving up control to create real ownership.

For local government leaders, where decisions are often high-stakes and staff are overextended, this model creates a blueprint for deeper engagement, higher competence, and more strategic thinking across all levels of your team.

• Why traditional leadership models limit growth, autonomy, and performance

• The difference between empowerment and actual transfer of control

• How pushing decision-making down creates buy-in and drives initiative

• Why control, clarity, and competence must move together

• The first steps to shifting your culture from passive compliance to active leadership

• Monday: Why control is overrated—and what to replace it with

• Tuesday–Thursday: Building clarity, competence, and initiative at every level

• Friday: From follower to leader—how to multiply leadership across your org

Join the Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC) this week and unlock:
✔ All 5 podcast episodes from the Turn the Ship Around series
✔ Daily blog reflections and tools for implementation
✔ Friday’s Virtual Mastermind session
✔ Access to a growing nationwide community of local government leaders

➡ Start your free 7-day trial at HaltingWinter.com/MLDC

• Book: Turn the Ship Around by L. David Marquet

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• MLDC Membership Details: www.haltingwinter.com/mldc

• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sethwinterhalter

• Website: www.HaltingWinter.com