Interviews with purpose-driven leaders who are dedicated to helping others and making a positive impact in the world.
July 27, 2023
Peter Matthies | Conscious Business Institute
Peter Matthies is the CEO of Conscious Business Institute headquartered in Santa Barbara. Follow on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn and learn more at consciousbusinessinstitute.com.
TELL US, WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU DO?
I’m Peter Matthies, software entrepreneur, recovering venture capitalist, and founder of the Conscious Business Institute (CBI). CBI provides businesses and leaders with a complete system for creating a more inspiring, life-giving, and empowering way to work and live. More than 55,000 professionals in over 170 countries have given our Conscious Business programs a thumbs up – in companies including BMW Group, Starbucks, Intel, and many others. My mission is to provide people from all walks of life with a more wholesome and fulfilling way to work and live. With humanity standing at the threshold of a new era – a transformation that will change everything in our world – we must rethink the way we work and live if we want to truly thrive. That’s what we help people do; in a way that blows their minds and opens their hearts.
HOW DID YOU GET HERE?
As a venture capitalist, I realized that most people are searching for a more fulfilling and balanced way to work. Millions of people around the world are disengaged or burnt out, ready to quit their workplace – if they just found a better way to earn money and create a career. I was one of them. Successful on the outside, but with my health suffering and my marriage on the brink of collapse. I decided that I had to quit the system in order to find an alternative way to work. So I left my home country and my career, packed two bags, and moved to Santa Barbara. Eventually – after an insight that I received on a plane in 2005 – I founded the Conscious Business Institute and developed groundbreaking approaches for people who want to create a life where they can expand into who they’re truly here to BE.
Peter Matthies is the CEO of Conscious Business Institute headquartered in Santa Barbara. Follow on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn and learn more at consciousbusinessinstitute.com.
WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR? WHY IS THIS WORK IMPORTANT TO YOU?
Our current model of success is broken. It isn’t designed to make us happy. Millions of individuals are ready to quit – organizations are desperately seeking new leadership ways so they can thrive in the future – and our natural environment is on the brink of collapse. And still – we go back to work every Monday as though everything is OK. It’s NOT. My purpose is to provide professionals and organizations with a new thinking – which transforms the way they create success in their lives. I deeply believe that when we see people for who they truly are here to BE, they access a level of power and inner clarity that can change the world. In everything I do, I provide people with the clarity and insights to access this incredibly new room of possibility – for themselves, their organizations, and the world.
WHAT IMPACT ARE YOU MAKING?
Many people speak about the need to change the way we work. In my book “Plan BE” and the work of the Conscious Business Institute, I provide the pathway to get there. Proven, step-by-step, and with a community of people where they can be themselves.
WHAT (OR WHO) INSPIRES YOU TO DO THIS WORK?
My own pain and longing for a better way to work. Despite flying first class and staying in 5-star hotels all around the world, I was deeply dissatisfied, missing purpose, and burning out. I took the first steps – but ultimately I received an insight on a plane that showed me “Conscious Business Institute” in 2005 – at a time when conscious business wasn’t an idea, yet. I knew then and there that this is what I was here to do with my life.
WHAT’S YOUR VISION, YOUR BIG DREAM FOR THE IMPACT YOU WANT TO MAKE?
My big dream is that people all around the world can experience who they’re here to be on a soul level – and then get the concrete pathway to make that reality. We don’t yet have a system for a “new world order”. For example, leaders might be intrigued by conscious business, but they don’t know how to get there. My vision is to provide the model and the stepping stones for people and organizations to get there. Ultimately, I expand consciousness, because that’s required if we want to create a world that works for all.
WHAT CHALLENGES ARE YOU FACING?
I was super early with the idea of Conscious Business, so it took years to define and develop the models. That was a really challenging journey where I often doubted whether I was just throwing the best years of my life away. Now, the biggest challenge is the enormous noise level out there. Meeting sales targets, overwork, exhaustion, and so many other distractions, prevent leaders and organizations from actually taking the time to look inwards. Consciousness change takes commitment. We can wait for 10 years and hope things change – and most people do – but once we actually get the tools, people are blown away by the lives that unfold in front of them.
WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR CAUSE AND/OR THE WORK YOU’RE DOING?
Don’t wait 10 years. I know it’s easy to push the inner work aside. But bear in mind: our success stops exactly at that point where our consciousness has stopped growing. If you’re ready to explore, take a look at Plan BE.
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE QUOTE OR WORDS OF INSPIRATION TO SHARE?
“There’s no system transformation without personal transformation.” Deepak Chopra
HOW CAN OTHERS SUPPORT YOU OR YOUR CAUSE?
One way is to check out Plan BE (the book) and share it with others. Two, to refer others to this material – whether it’s on our sites or other sites. We must transform our consciousness if we want to thrive in the future, so it requires us to share these ideas and possibilities with friends, co-workers, and also our leaders.
At Orapin, we believe those who are working for the greater good should be known, supported, and celebrated. We help purpose-driven organizations launch or up-level their PR program by giving them the strategy, resources, and support they need to increase awareness and expand their impact. If would like to be featured in INSPIRED IMPACT™, reach out to hello@orapin.co.