The Journeymen Collective are helping CEOs and other professionals find their sense of purpose through psychedelic psilocybin experiences.
Fifty years ago, if you were talking with someone about their recent “magic mushroom” trip, they were probably the opposite of the stereotypical boardroom type; they were most likely a long-haired, free-spirited hippie, adhering to Timothy Leary’s turn-on, tune-in, drop-out ethos. But today, the landscape of psychedelic substance users has changed drastically. A-list celebrities, investors, athletes, and, even, politicians, are among the most vocal advocates for the decriminalization and legalization of psychedelics including LSD, psilocybin, and MDMA.
Case in point: Toms Shoes founder Blake Mycoskie recently pledged $100 million to psychedelic research after a personal battle with depression in 2018 led him to find relief in ayahuasca, the psychedelic South American brew rich in DMT. OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman has also advocated for psychedelic use. So has David Bronner, CEO of the popular organic soap company, Dr. Bronner’s. The company has donated millions to support psychedelic legislative efforts and in 2022, began covering employee ketamine treatments.
According to Rob Grover and Gary Logan, co-founders of the British Columbia-based psilocybin-assisted retreat service, The Journeymen Collective, the interest in their brand of psychedelic healing is coming largely from white-collar CEOs, entrepreneurs, as well as high-profile celebrities and athletes.
“What is something that almost every human being does when they get up in the morning? They get up to go to work,” Grover told Ethos over Zoom. “And if we could put one word in front of that, which is ‘conscious’, people can be a little bit more conscious bit by bit every single day,” he says. Grover says that business owners and leaders often come to the couple’s retreats, held at their home in North Vancouver, feeling as if there’s something missing, “something they haven’t connected into within themselves.” Grover says that, typically, it’s some form of making a conscious contribution to other people, to the greater good. “We believe that business is a great way to really move that creative energy into something that’s actually going to create an impact.”
The Journeymen Collective was born after Logan and Grover quit their day jobs (Grover is a geologist by trade and Logan an actor) after Logan’s mother, who had been living with the couple (Grover and Logan are married), passed away.
Prospective guests of The Journeymen Collective go through a rigorous screening process and preparation period before their stay. “We believe that there has to be a high degree of personalized support through the actual intensive, immersive journey because when people are with us, they’re with us from the time that they wake up to the time they go to bed every night,” Grover says.
“There’s a high level of intent, a high level of respect, high level of integrity,” Logan says. That’s necessary for people to move through the vulnerable process psychedelic experiences typically bring. Logan says that while the medicine itself is certainly a big part of the experience, it’s really the integration that’s most critical — that window after the journey where processing and rebuilding happens.
“This isn’t just an in-and-out process,” he says. “It’s something whereby if you’re to come and work with us, as an entrepreneur, as an executive, as a professional, then it’s really, really important that you respect the process.” Logan says a lot of people are looking for the quick fix — the silver bullet. “And this can be a silver bullet, but only if you’re willing to take on the work.”
Grover agrees. “It’s not in the world of, ‘oh, what can I get from it?’ It’s not extractive, like ‘I go, I’m going to get the new business idea.’ No, you’re going to work on you,” he says. And that self-work allows the user to be “a clear vessel, a clear conduit,” he says, “so that you can actually discern those new ideas without abusing that relationship with the medicine.”
The couple is onto something. Demand has been high for their journeys and other psychedelic healing offerings across the globe, from MDMA to Iboga. Scores of psychedelic guides, healers, and users attest to its self-healing focus, regardless of the user’s initial intention. And Grover takes it a step further, suggesting that the very nature of psilocybin — a fungus — is to hollow us out. “If you look at mushrooms in a forest, they decompose that which is no longer necessary.” Grover says there are stories, emotions, and feelings that we all hold on to but haven’t been taught how to release them. “Psilocybin is wonderful at helping us dissolve those old aspects of ourselves that are no longer needed for where we’re at,” he says. “It’s connecting to an innate intelligence that we all have. But we haven’t been shown how to actually connect to it,” Logan says.
The demand for “conscious” business leaders has also never been higher. The planet experienced the hottest summer on record last year as a result of climate change, and the world’s leading climate experts say it’s going to become more common unless businesses, industries, and governments take wholesale action to reduce their impact. The recent wildfires in Los Angeles are likely to have long and lasting impacts too, particularly for Hollywood.
But running businesses with evolved levels of awareness is a harder sell to the decision makers preoccupied about with bottom lines. For Logan and Grover, it’s why psilocybin and other psychedelics will play a key role in fostering a healthier future. “It comes down to commitment to self,” says Logan. “Are you really wanting to explore the inner world of your soul?”
“We believe every human being comes into life to explore their unique genius,” Grover says. “There’s a greater clarity that comes through. And then it’s the acknowledgement, ‘this is a big part of why I am so fit to be the executive, the entrepreneur, the high achiever.’ And there’s a great empowerment that takes place through that process.”
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