It also ignores that many times a CEO is the one who started the business. To do that he has to invest his own money to buy and develop the real estate needed to operate, pay the taxes on said property, as well as the insurance for the property and the safety of those on it, pay the utilities, buy tools/machinery for what the project requires, buy materials to make the project, and pay workers so he can make more of that project efficiently, all while taking pay cuts in times when the business is less profitable, and even might go into personal debt to cover the business debt. Other CEOs have been with the company for years to f not decades, and are being paid according to their experiences.