EPISODE OVERVIEW
Episode 100 is a milestone celebration — and a role reversal. This time, Carolyn Butler-Madden is in the guest seat, interviewed by purpose champion and trusted colleague Peter ter Weeme. Together they reflect on 100 episodes of For Love & Money: the insights that have surprised, some of the stories that guests have shared, and the ideas that have grown more powerful with every conversation.
What began as a 12-episode companion to Carolyn’s book became something far bigger — a growing archive of proof that purpose-led business is not a trade-off but a compounding advantage. This episode draws threads across all 100 conversations: love as the unexpected connective tissue, purpose as the engine of genuine innovation, and identity as the foundation everything else is built on.
ABOUT PETER TER WEEME
Peter ter Weeme is one of Canada’s most respected purpose champions — a leader whose commitment to purpose in challenging industries has earned him recognition that goes well beyond titles. The Canadian Purpose Economy Project named its Purpose Champions Award in his honour: the Peter ter Weeme Purpose Champions Award. He and Carolyn collaborate through Purpose Ignition, and his decision to turn the tables and interview Carolyn for this milestone episode is a tribute to the relationship they’ve built through shared belief in what business can be.
THEMES EXPLORED IN THIS EPISODE
Love as the unexpected constant
Why Carolyn opens every interview with the question: “Do you believe there’s a role for love in business?”How “love” arrives differently in every conversation — and yet keeps arrivingThe Dave Dahl story: a guest who resisted the question and answered it completely by the endWhat 100 episodes have clarified: when business is driven by humanity and is profitable, that is business at its absolute bestPurpose and profit: proof over 100 episodes
The case for purpose and profit going hand in hand rather than head-to-headIntrepid Travel: from Episode 2 to Episode 99, the most-featured guest on the show and why — on track to $1.3B, AFR Fast Growth List 2024 (#2), B Corp certifiedThe elephant rides decision: pulling out of a highly profitable offering because it conflicted with who they wereThe Antarctica decision: withdrawing from a profitable tour and partnering to do it more sustainablySarah King’s concept of “impatient capital”: purpose held to the same standard as financial targetsCOVID as a test: Intrepid going to zero revenue overnight, using purpose as their North Star — and rehiring most of those they’d let goOther proof points: Who Gives a Crap, Outland Denim, Future Super, Dave’s Killer Bread (sold to Flower Foods for $275M USD)Purpose as the engine of genuine innovation
Good Citizens Eyewear: born around a dining table during a climate conversation — Harry Robinson (aged 8) holding a water bottle next to a pair of sunniesKoskela: an office furniture subscription model designed to solve the waste problem, applying a familiar model in a new contextPioneera (Danielle Owen Whitford): an AI-driven language model that detects burnout signals in workplace communication platforms like Slack and Teamsfilm (Elizabeth Tyler): a film platform built to bridge a divided world — curating films that tackle complex social issues including domestic violence and coercive controlAthena Manley / The Flexible CEO: identifying a two-sided problem (experienced C-suite leaders overlooked; mid-sized businesses unable to attract quality CEOs) and building a bridgeRobin Power / Insitutek: civil engineering touches 70% of Australia’s emissions — using that stat as a foundation for a new kind of company built around positive impactThe pattern that kept emerging: people who had been “smashed” by their own experience and came out of it determined to help others avoid the samePurpose isn’t powerful until it’s personal
Sandy Blackburn (Ep 89): 15 years in South Africa, living in townships, married into a Black South African family — Ubuntu as an antidote to Western individualism, and “money as a way to buy yourself space to love”Simon Sheikh (Ep 4): founding Future Super with a question — “In 2050 my son will be 35. What’s the world going to look like? I can’t sit on my hands”Peter Baines (Ep 91): forensic investigator sent to the Bali bombings and the Boxing Day tsunami — founder of Hands Across the Water, unable to walk away from what he sawJames Bartle / Outland Denim: a champion motocross rider who saw the film Taken, then witnessed sex trafficking firsthand in Cambodia — “I could not walk past this”Desmond Campbell: introducing himself in language before the interview — discovering he was descended from Vincent Lingiari of the Wave Hill Walk-Off, and how knowing that changed everythingThe big takeaway across 100 episodes: “If your purpose isn’t connected to who you are, I’d question whether it’s genuinely a purpose”The next chapter: Episodes 101 and beyond
Carolyn’s intention for the next 100: create more space to go deeper into the guest’s personal purpose and the story that brought them thereThe connection to the third book: identity + purpose + action = the stories people tell about who their organisation truly isPurpose isn’t powerful until it’s personal — the single thread that runs through every episodeGUESTS AND EPISODES REFERENCED
Geoff Manchester, Co-founder, Intrepid Travel — Ep 2 (also featured across multiple episodes – Ep 69 Part I & Part II; Ep 99 Sara King)Dave Dahl, Creator, Dave’s Killer Bread — Ep 8Simon Sheikh, CEO & Co-founder, Future Super — Ep 4Sandy Blackburn, Founder Social Outcomes — Ep 89Peter Baines, Founder, Hands Across the Water — Ep 91Sarah King, GM of Purpose, Intrepid Travel — Ep 99Robin Power, Founder, Insitutek & Ground Improvement — recent episode (Ep 97)Nik & Harry Robinson, Good Citizens EyewearSasha Titchkosky (Koskela), office furniture & sustainabilityDanielle Owen Whitford, Founder & CEO, PioneeraElizabeth Tyler, Founder good.film – Ep 90Athena Manley, The Flexible CEO – Ep 94James Bartle, Founding CEO, Outland Denim – Ep 10Simon Griffiths, CEO Who Gives A Crap – Ep 29Desmond Campbell, CEO Welcome To Country – Ep 59Peter ter Weeme – Ep 86WORK WITH CAROLYN
Book Carolyn as a keynote speaker: carolynbutlermadden.com
Purpose consulting and advisory: thecauseeffect.com.au
Connect with Carolyn on Linkedin
Get in touch: [email protected]