What incentive is there for the best and brightest to run for public office?

Think of the most brilliant person in your high school.
What did they want to do with their life?
Be a doctor?
Own a big business?
Invent the next big thing?

How many of them said “I want to fix the DMV for Columbus OH?” or “I want to resolve all the inefficiencies in the parks department of Boise?”

There’s no incentive for the brightest people to run for office because they wouldn’t tolerate such unrewarding work for a moment knowing full well they could do much better for themselves in a different work environment.
-They’d be managing people who grew up with the mantra “meh, it’s good enough for government work”.
-A good percentage of their constituents would hate them for no other reason than they were the one holding that position in that particular moment in time.
-There is little praise for success but buckets of scorn for any perceived failure and many times, there’s buckets of scorn even when they’re successful.

So if the best and brightest are off making their mark in the world, who’s left to run the city works?