If you’re leading a council and feel like you're being pulled in ten directions at once, it’s not unfamiliar.
The pressure isn’t new. But it’s not supposed to be normal either.
Here’s why it feels like everything's on fire and a few ways to bring things back into focus.
The daily pressure isn’t just busyness, it’s systemic
It’s 9am and your day’s already full.
Emails from councillors, questions from the media, a stack of overdue reports, and a team waiting on direction. You haven’t even looked at the agenda for this afternoon’s community meeting.
For many local government leaders, the chaos isn’t a one-off, it’s the job.
And not because you’re disorganised. But because you're holding together a system that’s constantly reacting. Where everyone wants an answer now, and space to think long-term is something you only dream about.
The reality of modern council leadership
Across Australasia, local government leaders are facing
- More services than ever before, from kindergarten rollouts to climate adaptation.
- Ongoing rate caps and grant volatility. Funding is tight, unpredictable, and rarely matches the scale of what’s expected.
- Public scrutiny and rising expectations, from both staff and community.
- A relentless political cycle councillor turnover, conflicting agendas, and short-term pressures.
- Legislative overload, with compliance demands touching every team.
It’s no wonder many CEOs and General Managers feel like they’re spending more time managing politics than leading.
Why everything feels urgent (and how to spot the trap)
Under pressure, it’s easy to default to the loudest voice in the room.
The inbox.
The crisis.
The councillor with the squeaky wheel.
But here’s the trap: if everything’s a priority, nothing actually is.
Without clarity on what really matters, backed by data you can trust, your leadership becomes reactive. You lose your ability to say ‘not now’. Worse, your team starts losing faith that decisions are being made for the right reasons.
So how do you step out of the cycle?
It starts with clarity. About what really matters. Where leadership energy is most needed. And how to get the right people doing the right work.
Here are four practical shifts that help:
1. Get clear on what’s really happening
Not just what’s loud, but what’s important. Use structured insight to spot patterns. When you regularly listen to your staff, your community, and your stakeholders in a consistent, comparable way, the fog begins to lift.
You begin to see:
- What’s falling through the cracks
- Where energy’s being wasted
- What your people actually need to succeed
That gives you the confidence to stop spinning and start leading.
2. Set your leaders up for success
Too often, everything filters back to the top. But strong operational leaders don’t just appear, they’re built.
Strategy, change and leadership expert Alicia McKay calls this “role clarity.” Her advice?Back your managers. Invest in decision-making confidence at every level, so they’re not stuck firefighting, they’re pushing things forward.
When your leaders lead well, you get to lift your eyes and focus on your role: set direction, manage risk, and think long-term.
3. Share the mental load
Leadership isn't just strategy. It's coordination.
Make sure your executive and management teams have a shared understanding of what matters most, what trade-offs are in play, and where support is needed.
Giving you that visibility allows you to spot misalignment across staff, leadership, and community, and catch it before it turns into confusion, resistance, or missed opportunities.
4. Make space to lead
Strategy isn’t something you “get to” if there’s time. It’s your actual job. But it only happens if you protect the headspace.
Build breathing room into your week. Guard it. And get clear on what only you can do, delegate the rest.
This isn’t a luxury. It’s what enables you to lead well.
You’re not imagining the chaos. But you don’t have to stay stuck in it either.
Leading in local government will always be complex. But it doesn’t have to feel like a crisis every day.
With the right insight, clarity, and support, you can step out of survival mode and into the kind of leadership your team and community need to thrive.