Are you a senior corporate leader, director, or enterprise tech VP who has climbed to a high-paying salary, yet you find yourself completely exhausted from putting 60 to 70 hours a week into the machine?

In this transparent guest conversation, host Billy Keels sits down with Derek Schutz—a senior director leading a massive services team and a multimillion-dollar account portfolio at a market-leading enterprise software brand. Derek pulls back the curtain on his own profound personal wake-up call, sharing how the compounding physical and psychological stress of corporate "busyness" led him to completely audit his calendar capital. Discover how to utilize corporate execution principles—like tracking lead measures instead of lag measures—to compress your working schedule down to a high-impact 40 hours. Learn how to have direct, proactive conversations with your management team to establish unbreakable professional boundaries, and see how to parlay your enterprise leadership capital into an independent, highly rewarding side project completely by choice, 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

📌 Questions Answered in This Episode:

• How can a senior tech director utilize corporate execution strategies to compress an exhausting 70-hour work week down to 40 hours?
• What are the most effective ways to manage up and set strict availability boundaries with your corporate management?
• How do you shift your day-to-day focus from historical "lag measures" to predictive "lead measures" to guarantee professional and personal success?
• Why is an environmental and digital reset critical for corporate leaders looking to eliminate unproductive distraction and screen time?
• How does a high-performing professional overcome the internal friction and fear of publishing content publicly on LinkedIn?

⏱️ Episode Chapters:

• 00:00 - Corporate Execution: Maximizing Multimillion-Dollar Portfolios While Building Options
• 02:21 - The Big Tech Tipping Point: Navigating Constant Layoffs and Artificial Intelligence
• 03:51 - The Legacy Routine Trap: Shifting From Safe Corporate Paths into Family Legacies
• 04:30 - Salesforce Advantages: Appreciating Enterprise Perks While Spotting Quota Limits
• 05:58 - The Steel Reserve Wake-Up Call: Battling the Accumulated Dad-Bod Effect
• 08:23 - Quality vs. Quantity: Making a Powerful Visual and Behavioral Shift for Your Kids
• 08:45 - Shaving It Down: Reclaiming the 5-to-8 PM Window for Radical Family Presence
• 09:58 - Managing Up: Having the Platinum Dialogue with Your Boss About Priorities
• 11:25 - The 20-Goal Fallacy: Stripping Your Corporate Calendar Down to What Management Truly Cares About
• 12:20 - 4DX Frameworks: Tracking Predictive Lead Measures Instead of Reactionary Lag Measures
• 13:50 - Friction Reduction: Designing Environment Resets for Your Gym Wardrobe and Kitchen Pantry
• 14:51 - Digital Cleaning: Auditing Who You Follow to Eliminate Mindless Screen Scrolling
• 16:32 - Hitting Fears Head-On: Overcoming the Discomfort of Your First LinkedIn Post
• 18:00 - Output Over Hours: Why Enterprise Software Cares About Results, Not Grinding
• 18:50 - The Trough Mantra: "This Will Be the Story You Will One Day Tell"
• 21:45 - Reclaiming Your Freedom and Connecting with Derek Schutz

Connect with Derek Schutz:

Website: https://levelupfordads.com/ 

📘 About Billy Keels & Corporate Optionality

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

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