Once you realize that you are a group of one, it brings things into focus. Deans who report to you look for you to lead them, provide them with the necessary resources, and advocate for academic affairs. They are not looking for you to be one of them. I remember that perspective from when I was a dean. My fellow deans and I were a team. We collaborated when we approached the provost when it was to our benefit. I was one among equals.
As a provost, I was one among one. Even in the cabinet with my fellow vice presidents, I was "first among equals." And if I wasn't that, I was undoubtedly the only provost at the table leading a division that was, in every way, different from the divisions the other Vice Presidents led.
This sense of loneliness was often exacerbated by being one of the few, if not the only, woman in the leadership team.
It shouldn't have to be this lonely, but it usually is.
