Abstract
Mounting work pressures brought on by the pandemic led to an escalation in the intangible responsibility of managing emotions, which in turn subjected leaders of higher education institutions to heightened levels of exhaustion, depression, and turnover. This phenomenological study sought to understand how senior leaders in higher education institutions described their engagement in emotional labor in response to their institution's approach to operating during the pandemic. Findings include leaders feeling unable to leave their positions, concealing their feelings, and engaging in surface acting, leading to higher levels of emotional exhaustion.