Going Long Podcast with Billy Keels

Are you a senior corporate executive, COO, or enterprise leader sitting on multi-billion dollar operational experience, wondering how to channel your skill capital into an independent venture that aligns with your energy?

In this transparent guest conversation, host Billy Keels sits down with Cathy Ward—former Regional COO for SAP Asia Pacific & Japan (an 8,000-person region generating $2.5B in revenue), Operating Partner at Keensight Capital, and founder of The Future Ready Agency. Cathy shares her 30-year journey across 18 roles in 7 companies worldwide, detailing how writing a sabbatical policy in her late 30s allowed her to step off the corporate treadmill and pivot from sales leadership to HR and global operations. Discover how to distinguish between what skills to keep and what to let go, how to align organization, people, and AI into a unified growth system, and why "radical retirement" is actually about continuously retiring old selves to step into greater schedule sovereignty entirely by choice.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

Website: https://futurereadyagency.com/

Contact Page: https://futurereadyagency.com/contact

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathy-ward-5456aa1/

• How can taking a strategic sabbatical help a senior leader realign their career with their core values?

• What are the most effective ways to transition from multi-billion dollar enterprise operations into founding your own firm?

• How do high-performing executives determine which skills to keep and which habits to let go of when moving out of corporate life?

• Why is aligning organization, people, and AI the ultimate system for future business readiness?

• What does "radical retirement" mean for high achievers who never want to stop contributing?

• 00:00 - Broadcast Recording Setup: Tuesday, September 8, 2026, with Cathy Ward

• 03:41 - 30 Years and 18 Roles: The $2.5 Billion Regional COO Journey

• 06:00 - The Sabbatical Pivot: Writing the Policy and Stepping Out of the Relentless Pace

• 08:15 - Energy Over Orbit: Shifting From Sales Leadership to Global HR and Operations

• 10:50 - What to Keep and What to Let Go: Sorting Through 30 Years of Corporate Capital

• 14:00 - The Rule of Three: Simplifying Strategy When Navigating Major Business Shifts

• 16:45 - The Future Ready Agency: Integrating Organization, People, and AI

• 20:20 - Writing for Clarity: How Journaling and Coursework Unlocked Written Voice

• 22:50 - Radical Retirement: Why Re-inventing Yourself Has Nothing to Do with Stopping Work

• 26:10 - Managing the Transition: Sit with Uncertainty and Embrace the Plunge

• 29:30 - Trough Principles: Believing Everything Happens for a Reason and Journaling Patterns

• 33:00 - Connecting with Cathy Ward and Exploring The Future Ready Agency

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you an overachieving director, VP, or enterprise leader holding yourself back from launching a side venture or pitching a new initiative because you feel you lack certain credentials or qualifications?

In this inspiring solo episode, host Billy Keels breaks down a relatable lesson from a rainy summer afternoon at a Chicago White Sox baseball game. Billy shares how his oldest son overcame self-doubt, navigated around the crowds, and used his unique background as an international traveler from Spain to stand out and claim a souvenir foul ball from the ball boy. Discover why focusing on what you don't have is the ultimate limiting belief, how to identify and lean into your unique differentiators, and why taking calculated action during chaotic moments when others retreat is the secret to winning in your career and building independent assets.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How do limiting beliefs prevent senior corporate leaders from going after new opportunities?

• What does a rainy Chicago White Sox game teach us about identifying unique differentiators?

• How do you pivot from focusing on what you lack to leveraging what you actually have?

• Why is stepping out of your comfort zone essential for gaining long-term confidence?

• How can you spot market opportunities and take action when competitors retreat?

• 00:00 - The White Sox Game Setup: Summer Travels with Family in Chicago

• 01:10 - The Rain Delay Dilemma: Row 12 Seats and Spotting the Foul Balls

• 02:15 - Overcoming Self-Doubt: Facing the Fear of Asking

• 03:20 - Spotting the Opportunity: When the Crowd Retreats Under the Concourse

• 04:15 - Finding the Differentiator: Showing the Spanish ID to the Ball Boy

• 05:30 - Walking Away with the Prize: How Action Builds Real Confidence

• 06:40 - Translating the Lesson: Applying Unique Value to Your Career and Business

• 07:50 - Moving From Theory to Practice Today

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you a senior enterprise executive, VP, or elite sales director performing at the absolute top of your game, yet feeling an inner friction about what your next logical career step should be ?

In this transparent guest conversation, host Billy Keels sits down with Kate Turner, a veteran sales leader with over a decade of corporate experience, including five years executing strategic goals at Salesforce and scaling tech firms like Glassdoor. Kate maps out the profound, direct correlation between professional poker mechanics and elite enterprise execution, showing how she used a cyclical path between multi-billion-dollar brands, scrappy startups, and live card tables to anchor her own definition of lifestyle harmony. Discover how to disarm the external pressures of mainstream career paths, utilize corporate educational resources to fund your skill development, and analyze any professional rut through a simple three-choice framework so you can navigate your career entirely by intention, not obligation.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

Contact and connect with Kate Turner via these Links: Website: https://www.kateturnercoaching.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kateturner9/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/all.in.with.kate/

• How do corporate professionals use advanced professional poker strategies to build self-awareness and negotiation skills?

• What does a healthy professional cycle look like when moving between massive brands and fast-growing startups?

• How can an enterprise sales director transition their focus from strict quota production to people management and coaching?

• Why is keeping your inner circle exceptionally small critical when planning a major professional shift?

• What are the 3 foundational choices an executive has when looking to solve any severe mid-career challenge?

• 00:00 - Playing the Person, Not the Cards: Merging Corporate DNA with Poker Mechanics

• 03:29 - The Three-Part Executive Cycle: Large Brands, Startups, and Live Cards

• 05:55 - Disrupting Mainstream Expectations: Choosing to Stand Out Over Forcing Compatibility

• 06:56 - The Multicultural Map: Blending Germanic Structure with Latin Flexibility

• 09:15 - Shifting From Corporate Sales Quotas to High-Impact Leadership Development

• 12:44 - Guarding Your Inner Circle: Filtering Prescriptive Advice From Outside Your Playing Field

• 16:15 - Reconnecting with Yourself: Shifting From a Corporate Persona to Authentic Traits

• 18:44 - Reclaiming Frameworks: Using Big-Brand L&D Structure for Personal Accountability

• 21:11 - Poker Immunity: Battling Rejection, Overwhelming Uncertainty, and the Corporate Mask

• 25:06 - Reinvesting Financial Capital: The Trap of Building Everything on Your Own

• 26:43 - The Shock to the System: Turning Layoffs and Reorgs into Strategic Action

• 30:25 - The Salesforce Sandbox: Leveraging Enterprise Educational Budgets to Master Transferable Skills

• 34:59 - Permission Slip Ups: Unpacking Strategic Failures with Impartial Advisors

• 39:07 - The Three Choices: Leave, Accept, or Change It Now

• 42:04 - Expanding Your Professional Network and Connecting with Kate Turner

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you an overachieving director, VP, or enterprise executive who has been told your entire career to climb the ladder, hit age 65, and magically "retire" to a quiet beach?

In this provocative solo episode, host Billy Keels breaks down a recurring, honest realization that surfaces during client onboarding: high achievers are simply wired differently. Traditional retirement—sitting around sipping mai tais—is a myth built for someone else's definition of success. Drawing examples from legendary contributors like Warren Buffett and 80-year-old industry leaders who show up to work every day by choice, Billy explains that true career optionality isn't about stopping work. It's about reaching your "Optionality Number" so you can redirect your high-level skill capital into projects, independent assets, and community causes that give you deep personal energy and financial returns entirely on your own terms.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• Why is the traditional age-65 retirement myth completely misaligned with high-performing corporate leaders?

• What is the difference between "stopping work" and redirecting your executive skill capital?

• Why do multi-millionaires in their 80s and 90s continue to show up and contribute every day?

• How does reaching your "Optionality Number" give you total agency over where you apply your energy?

• How can you build independent assets today without waiting for an arbitrary corporate timeline?

• 00:00 - The Heartbreaking Relief: Why You Are Never Going to Retire at 65

• 01:30 - The High-Achiever DNA: Useful Service vs. Sitting on a Beach

• 03:55 - The Warren Buffett Example: 96-Year-Old Drive and Lifelong Contribution

• 05:00 - The Optionality Number: Redirecting Your Energy into Assets You Own

• 06:35 - Wired Differently: Embracing Your Need for Impact and Meaningful Work

• 08:10 - Operationalizing Contribution: Getting Compensated into Your 80s and 90s

• 09:30 - Moving From Theory to Practice Today

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you a high-performing corporate leader or tech executive sitting on decades of valuable skill capital, wondering how to channel your energy into projects that create a profound, real-world impact?

In this inspiring guest conversation, host Billy Keels sits down with Tim Lockyear—two-time "Zoogler," former Google global founder advocate, and founder of the Supporting Kids Foundation. Tim shares his 30-year journey through enterprise tech giants like IBM, Sprint, Accenture, and Google, detailing how facing a scary health diagnosis for his young son prompted him to confront survivor's guilt and co-found a 501(c)(3) charity. Discover how the Supporting Kids Foundation raised over $5.6 million to assist more than 1,100 families dealing with pediatric cancer. Learn why true growth always lives on the other side of difficult, how to recognize when a corporate promotion isn't aligned with your personal motivations, and how to build independent, option-driven endeavors by leveraging the execution skills you master in corporate life.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How can a corporate executive leverage enterprise skill sets to build a high-impact non-profit organization?

• What does it look like to turn personal family challenges and survivor's guilt into a $5.6M community foundation?

• How do you evaluate whether a corporate leadership promotion actually aligns with your personal definition of success?

• Why is financial independence essential for giving leaders the confidence to take calculated risks?

• How can modern AI platforms help under-resourced non-profits scale their impact and streamline operations?

• 00:00 - Broadcast Recording Setup: Tuesday, September 15, 2026, with Tim Lockyear

• 03:37 - 30 Years in Enterprise Tech: IBM, Sprint, Accenture, and Two-Time Zoogler

• 04:47 - The Catalyst: A Son's Diagnosis and the Origins of Supporting Kids Foundation

• 07:26 - $5.6 Million and 1,100 Families Impacted: Scaling a Community Mission

• 09:19 - The Corporate Advantage: How Enterprise Leadership Fosters Confidence and Resilience

• 12:30 - Embracing the MVP: Why Failing and Stumbling Is Essential to Personal Growth

• 14:45 - Turning Down Promotions: Recognizing That I Want to Be Where the Action Is

• 19:46 - "I'm Not Coin-Operated": Defining What Really Drives Your Executive Execution

• 24:18 - Financial Independence as a Tool for Career Options and Risk-Taking

• 26:55 - "Growth Is on the Other Side of Difficult": Learning Through Scars and Challenges

• 30:52 - The $19,000 Investment: From a Small Company to an Accenture Acquisition

• 35:10 - Leveraging AI for Good: Helping Non-Profits Scale and Do More with Less

• 42:20 - Sharing the Blueprint: How Tim Helps Other Volunteers Start Foundations

• 45:16 - The Trough Principle: "It's Never as Bad as You Think, and You're Never as Great as You Think"

• 50:03 - Connecting with Tim Lockyear and Supporting Kids Foundation

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you an overachieving director, VP, or enterprise leader who is constantly presented with new promotions, side deals, and business opportunities, yet feels completely paralyzed and overwhelmed by having too many choices?

In this practical solo episode, host Billy Keels addresses the hidden challenge that high performers rarely talk about: being "drowned in success." When you excel in corporate life and simultaneously build a side business, your challenge isn't finding leads or opportunities; it's learning how to sequence them without exhausting your 168 hours in a week. Billy shares the exact 3-question framework he uses with private coaching clients to help them filter out noise, strategically say "no," and focus strictly on projects that generate high energy, long-term fulfillment, and real financial impact.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• Why do high achievers struggle with having too many opportunities rather than too few?

• What are the 3 core questions you must ask to evaluate any new business or career opportunity?

• How do you differentiate between short-term "dopamine" projects and sustainable long-term ventures?

• Why is it essential to demand a positive financial return alongside personal passion projects?

• How does learning to say "no" protect your schedule sovereignty and family time capital?

• 00:00 - The Hidden Executive Problem: Drowning in Success and Opportunity

• 01:10 - Scrapping the Surface: Why Side Assets Are About Impact, Not Just Paychecks

• 02:15 - The 168-Hour Equalizer: Balancing Enterprise Growth with Family Milestones

• 03:20 - Question 1: Does This Opportunity Positively Spike Your Energy?

• 04:15 - Question 2: Is This Something You Would Prepare to Do Forever?

• 05:00 - Question 3: Is It Delivering Real Individual and Financial Impact?

• 06:10 - The Comfort Trap: Shifting From Saying "Yes" to Mastering the Focus of "No"

• 07:05 - Moving From Theory to Practice Today

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you an overachieving sales director, VP, or enterprise leader wondering how to channel your day-to-day client execution and operational discipline into high-impact independent assets?

In this transparent guest conversation, host Billy Keels sits down with Kevin Devanney—founder and president of Incentive Travel Solutions and the Devanney Hospitality Group. Kevin shares his 27-year trajectory, detailing how the high-stakes lessons taught by his early corporate mentors laid the foundation for managing luxury group trips to Moscow's Kremlin and the Louvre in Paris. Discover how Kevin navigated the sudden, full-stop impact of COVID-19 by pivoting his team into local real estate and restaurant revitalization, why true entrepreneurs wait for real problems to solve rather than chasing trends, and how managing your "fitness, finances, and family" triangle creates absolute resilience when facing high-stakes business shifts.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

Connect with Kevin Devanney via these links: Website: https://www.incentivetravelsolutions.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-devanney-5916762

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevindevanney/

Email: [email protected]

• How do you translate meticulous corporate customer service habits into an independent asset?

• What does it look like to pivot an entire company when an unexpected event completely stops your industry?

• Why is chasing cash bonuses inferior to creating unforgettable, experience-based incentive rewards?

• How do you build a local real estate footprint that revitalizes a town and creates family legacy options?

• What is the "Fitness, Finance, and Family" triangle, and how does it help executives navigate low moments?

• 00:00 - Broadcast Recording Setup: Tuesday, September 15, 2026, with Kevin Devanney

• 02:04 - The Train at 365 MPH: How Incentive Travel Solutions Navigated the COVID-19 Full Stop

• 04:35 - Old-School Mentorship: Smacks in the Head, Kremlin Dinners, and Meticulous Details

• 07:15 - Pivoting Forward: Embracing Mistakes as the Most Critical Part of Growth

• 11:00 - The Path Chose Me: Why True Opportunities Present Themselves When You Master Your Craft

• 14:50 - Cash is a Satisfier, Travel is Unforgettable: Redefining High-Performer Rewards

• 18:25 - Staying in Your Lane: Refusing to Dilute Your Core Niche Expertise

• 21:28 - Local Revitalization: Turning One Dust-Filled Building into Pineville's Main Street Revival

• 25:40 - Ethical Entrepreneurship: Never Stealing Clients from Your Previous Employer

• 28:05 - Legacy Engineering: Deciding Between Selling Out or Passing the Torch to Your Kids

• 33:10 - The Triangle Framework: Balancing Fitness, Finances, and Family in the Trough

• 36:30 - Connecting with Kevin Devanney and Exploring Incentive Travel Solutions

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL Day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you a high-performing corporate director, VP, or enterprise leader who genuinely enjoys your job, yet feels a quiet, unshakeable urge to see what else you're capable of building on the side?

In this reflective solo episode, host Billy Keels shares a relatable, real-life story about his youngest son's decision to leave a comfortable, winning basketball team to try out for a higher-level squad. Drawing a direct parallel to the corporate world, Billy breaks down why true high performers aren't trying to escape their day-to-day work, they are simply competing against the best version of themselves. Discover how to test your business ideas in the open market without abandoning the safety and steady income of your corporate career, why feeling uncomfortable is a required sign of real growth, and how exploring your natural curiosity gives you total schedule sovereignty and long-term peace of mind.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How can a corporate executive test new business ideas without leaving their current job?

• Why do high achievers feel the urge to step outside their comfort zone even when they're already winning?

• How do you overcome the fear of uncertainty and potential failure when starting a side venture?

• What does it mean to compete against the "best version of yourself" rather than comparing yourself to others?

• How do you move from passive contemplation into concrete, real-world action?

• 00:00 - The Energy of Choice: Learning Career Lessons from Family Dynamics

• 01:10 - Staying in the Safe Zone: Staying on the Winning Team vs. Wanting More

• 02:25 - Competing Against Your Best Version: Moving Past Surface-Level Metrics

• 03:45 - The Decision to Try Out: Testing Skills in the Open Market Without Guarantees

• 05:10 - Navigating the Discomfort: New Systems, New Drills, and Building Confidence

• 06:30 - Keeping the Foundation: Growing a Side Asset While Enjoying Your Corporate Role

• 07:45 - Eliminating the "What-Ifs": Moving From Theory to Action Today

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you an overachieving tech leader, account director, or enterprise strategist sitting on valuable skill capital, wondering how to channel your expertise into independent assets without sacrificing your corporate career?

In this transparent guest conversation, host Billy Keels sits down with Izu Nwachukwu—Senior Client Solutions Manager at LinkedIn (MENA), founder of IN Marketing Consultancy, podcast host, and author of 9 to Thrive: Side Hustle to Success. Izu pulls back the curtain on his 20-year corporate evolution, sharing how early retail failures made him fear entrepreneurship for a decade—until a global economic reset forced him to re-evaluate his timeline. Discover why treating your corporate employer as your "first business partner" changes your entire career dynamic, how to convert job description KPIs into high-margin market services, and why setting a 10-year vision allows you to navigate setbacks with total resilience and schedule sovereignty.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/izu-nwachukwu-%F0%9F%8E%99%EF%B8%8F-47880510/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/izu.nwachukwu/

Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/real-people-real-business/id1782493612

• How can a senior corporate professional view their 9-to-5 employer as a primary business partner?

• What is the psychological process for recovering from an early entrepreneurial failure to build again?

• How do you translate internal corporate KPIs into high-value services for the open market?

• Why is finding an employer with clear side-project policies critical for long-term career optionality?

• How can high achievers maintain operational momentum while keeping a 10-to-15 year long-term vision?

• 00:00 - Broadcast Recording Setup: Tuesday, September 8, 2026, with Izu Nwachukwu

• 02:00 - Digital Strategist & Marketing Expert: Two Decades Across Europe and MENA

• 03:04 - The 20-Year Itch: Bouncing Back from Early Retail Business Failures

• 06:30 - The Corporate Hierarchy: Why Big Companies Function Like the Military

• 08:10 - Real People, Real Business: Unpacking the Raw Reality of Executive Setbacks

• 09:43 - The First Business Partner: Re-Framing Your Corporate Role as a Capital Engine

• 12:15 - Open Boundaries: Navigating Corporate Side-Project Policies with Confidence

• 15:10 - Turning KPIs into Services: Packaging Tech Acumen into Marketable Value

• 18:00 - Failing Fast: Shutting Down Misaligned Brands After 12 Months

• 21:00 - 9 to Thrive: Writing a Book in 12-Month Sprints and Cutting 50% of the Draft

• 25:00 - Trough Principles: "We'll Make It Happen" and Adapting to Daily Friction

• 29:20 - Reclaiming Your Freedom and Connecting with Izu Nwachukwu

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels

Are you an overachieving corporate director, VP, or enterprise tech leader who constantly says "yes" to every special project, initiative, and request—only to end up completely exhausted and stretched thin?

In this practical solo episode, host Billy Keels breaks down a powerful insight inspired by a conversation between entrepreneur Jesse Itzler and podcaster Joe Rogan. Billy examines the corporate trap of seeking validation through endless "special assignments" and explains why people-pleasing creates a virtuous cycle that ultimately leads to burnout. Discover how learning to "strategically decline" unaligned opportunities—or simply learning how to say "no"—increases your focus on core priorities, improves your Return on Sleep (ROS), and gives you the exact time capital needed to excel in your 9-to-5 while building your own independent side business.

🚀 Want to make your corporate role optional? Grab your FREE copy of Billy's 3-Step Process eBook here: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• Why do high-performing corporate executives fall into the trap of taking on too many special projects?

• How does constant people-pleasing at work lead to chronic exhaustion and diluted focus?

• What does it mean to "strategically decline" an opportunity without damaging your corporate reputation?

• How does mastering the word "no" improve your focus and increase your Return on Sleep (ROS)?

• How can you use your reclaimed personal time to build independent side assets while overperforming at work?

• 00:00 - Finding Inspiration: Lessons from Jesse Itzler and Joe Rogan

• 01:10 - The People-Pleasing Trap: Why Executives Say "Yes" to Every Special Assignment

• 02:25 - The Exhaustion Cycle: Diluting Your Time Capital When You're Already Overperforming

• 03:40 - The Jesse Itzler Insight: Learning the Value of the Word "NO"

• 04:30 - Strategic Decline: How to Decline Opportunities That Don't Move the Needle

• 05:45 - Maximizing ROS: How Reclaimed Focus Boosts Performance and Eliminates Burnout

• 06:50 - Building the Day Dream vs. The Evening Dream: Using Reclaimed Time for Side Assets

• 07:45 - Moving From Theory to Practice Today

If you're a corporate executive who wants to make your role optional, learn how to achieve true control over your career and turn your corporate skills into personal assets.

With 26 years of experience in corporate sales leadership, Billy Keels achieved true optionality through multiple income streams. Today, he has helped dozens of executives build a predictable path to take control of their time and start living their ideal day.

This free ebook gives you everything you need to identify, plan, and take control of your career while building financial optionality, leveraging your skills, and starting to live your IDEAL day - today!

• Get the Free eBook: https://www.makeitoptional.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p2olm

• How to Leave a Review for The Going Long Podcast: https://youtu.be/qfRqLVcf8UI

Be sure to connect with Billy:

• Website: https://www.billykeels.com

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@billykeels

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billykeels

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billykeels

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyKeelsFanPage

• Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/billykeels