Committed and driven individuals that strive to carry their teams down the path to success. That is what makes a great leader. But it is of widespread belief that leaders are not born this way. They are moulded by their experiences. Much like riding a bike, or overcoming your fear of public speaking, the skills that underpin great leadership can be learnt.
So how do you become this? The traits that define great leadership are often cultivated through years of strategic training. Which makes you think, isn’t there a quicker way? This time-frame is too long when your team needs a great leader now.
Yet more and more business leaders, creatives and entrepreneurs are tapping in to a refined technique that is turning personal development inside-out. They are using psilocybin truffles to get ahead of the game. Through positive intention and a little magic, this not-so-secret sacred medicine is allowing professionals to become their best self. This article will show you three ways that psilocybin truffles can help you become an outstanding leader.
1. Psilocybin Truffles Can Make You More Present
Psilocybin truffles are a psychedelic substance. They are sold in smart shops in Amsterdam, and have been continuously linked to partying in the Dutch capital. But the psychoactive component in these truffles – psilocybin – has been used by indigineous tribespeople for millennia.
Due to its legal status in many Western nations, the history of research into psilocybin is complex. However, there has been some major breakthroughs in the past fifteen years. Psilocybin has proven to be a miracle cure for depression, which has facilitated an explosion in scientific interest.
What science has found is that truffles can influence the activity in the Default Mode Network (DMN). The DMN is found in everyone, and is considered to be the brain’s mind wandering hub. When your DMN is active, it’s likely that you are unfocused or day-dreaming. Conversely, when you are 100% committed to the task at hand, the DMN is deactivated.
Having an overactive DMN can cause problems, especially as a leader in the workplace. When your DMN is overactive, your mind is wandering constantly. You may not be able to give your attention to others, and they may feel a lack of care on your part. Truffles can help you with this, though. Researchers at Imperial College London gathered volunteers that took psilocybin in their research facility. The volunteers had their brains scanned before and after their psilocybin experience. The researchers observed that the connections between the DMN re-wired in volunteers that took psilocybin. This subsequently made the DMN less active in these volunteers.
By using truffles, you can take back control of your wandering mind, and ultimately become more present in every moment. Tapping in to every moment with mindful awareness is key in cultivating better working relationships with your team, which ultimately affords a better leadership style.
2. Psilocybin Helps You Leave Your Ego At The Door
As Forbes and Harvard Business Review has put it, the ego is the enemy of good leadership. Many CEOs and entrepreneurs are now recognising this, pioneering a completely different leadership approach: servant leadership.
Servant leadership is not a new idea, however. Coined by Robert Greenleaf in the 1970’s, servant leadership ultimately aims to put the team first; as a leader, your main purpose is to maximise the potential of your team members by helping them grow. Bruised egos are no place for this style of leadership, where your complete focus is on the benefit of the team, rather than the benefit of the self.
Sameer Dholakia, an established tech CEO in San Francisco, has adopted this servant leadership style. Dholakia has received immense praise from Glassdoor and Comparably, whilst becoming the most highly rated CEO in 2017. Meeting the people that run the business takes up 50% of his schedule, and contributes to a healthy and happy work environment.
What supposedly helps the most is ending every meeting asking if there is anything that he can personally do to help. This creates an open and honest work environment that facilitates great and insightful new ideas.
So where do psilocybin truffles fit into all of this? Sometimes using truffles will take you to a state of ego-death. And what is ego death? In short, it’s the shedding of the self. A feeling that there is no ‘you’, and a deep sense of connection with every other sentient being. If this seems completely alien, I wouldn’t be surprised. It’s inexplicable, and often only relevant to the person that experiences this.
The fundamental quality of this state is the emphasis of the importance of others, rather than a more egocentric world. Truffle induced ego death can prevent your ego from getting in the way. By focussing more on others, and less on yourself, servant leadership can easily be adopted, and your project will grow alongside the team members that you seek to support.
3. Psilocybin Truffles Can Provide new Perspectives and Heightened Empathy
Another trait that defines a great leader is empathy. Think about it: have you ever had a boss that would never understand other people’s point of view? An insensitive and inconsiderate leader is one that won’t go very far.
Consider this instead: a leader who listens and understands. This is the fundamental trait of a great leader, and one which empathy encompasses.
Empathy is the ability to understand and consider other people’s feelings and experiences. People high in empathy can see the perspective of others very clearly, and psilocybin can provide this much needed perspective.
Psilocybin has the capacity to change the connections in your brain, and therefore change the way you think. Many people that experience a psilocybin trip are stunned by the things that the truffles show them, and often cite this as the catalyst that radically changes their perspective.
Brian, a 50-year old scientist and natural skeptic, participated in one of the first psilocybin studies at Johns Hopkins University. After his participation in the study, Brian’s attitude towards life changed. Brian told Time magazine, “It became absolutely obvious that perspective determines your experience with reality and that maybe being able to take more perspectives than one will give you a more rich and probably more true version of what reality is.” Maria Estevez, another study participant, reported more tolerance and forgiveness towards others, with her friends corroborating this insight.
It is this change in perspective that can help you become a better leader. Being able to understand others perspectives and needs will make your team feel validated. This validation ultimately leads to a healthier and happier workplace, a necessary foundation for more productivity and success.
Tying it all together
So there are the three traits that will lead you on the way to becoming a greater leader. These characteristics live in harmonious interdependence: if you become more present, then you may be more receptive to others needs, ultimately treading the path towards a better leadership style that is more focussed on the team rather than the self. Cultivating these characteristics can benefit both yourself and your team in a profound and unprecedented manner.
To gain these traits, however, psilocybin truffles need to be used with caution. They are powerful tools. Moreover, intention that underpins the use of truffles is hugely beneficial and can’t be overstated. If you wish to cultivate these traits through truffles, then it’s important to consciously acknowledge this.
On top of this, having a space to be able to discuss your truffle experiences with others is of great importance. This can help you evaluate what you’ve learnt, and provide an even deeper insight. Hopefully, through the first hand experience of psilocybin truffles, you can take the same steps as other successful entrepreneurs and finally become an outstanding leader.