This article was originally published on Medium and is written by Eddy Vaisberg, 1heart alumni, ex-CXO & ex-BCG, and current Project Lead at Spirit Tech Collective.
What if the key to becoming a better leader wasn’t another strategy book or framework, but a deeper understanding of yourself? What if the most powerful tool for unlocking your potential wasn’t found in a boardroom, but in ceremony?
There’s a common belief that spiritual work is separate from productivity or even makes us less effective in business. Many founders hesitate to explore this space, fearing that introspection and healing will slow them down or soften their competitive edge. But the data says otherwise. A growing number of high-performing entrepreneurs are discovering that deep inner work doesn’t take them away from success — it enhances it.
I just came out of my second leadership transformational retreat with 1heart over the holidays, and the depth of the experience is still reverberating through me. 1heart has developed a truly unique and special eight-week program anchored around a seven-day in-person in Journey in Costa Rica featuring three ceremonies with the sacred medicine — Ayahuasca.
And it is not just about the plant medicine. The program weaves together powerful mindset-shifting workshops and an in-depth integration process that guides participants to rethink values, redefine their mission, and craft a 10-year vision that serves as a repolished North Star for the future. In many ways, it’s a complete operating system reboot that has reshaped how I show up as a founder, leader, and human.
How It Changed Me
My two Ayahuasca retreats with 1heart have been among my life’s most life-changing experiences. I will set aside the incredible impact it has had on me as a human for a moment and focus on its impact on me as a founder.
The most significant shift is that my decision-making has become more intuitive, allowing me to make faster, sharper choices with confidence and trust.
Six months ago, I started a bold new project to bring together an ecosystem at the intersection of Spirituality and Tech. Instead of over-analyzing and waiting for all the answers before taking action, I leaned into my intuition and energetic flow. Most of the micro-decisions I’ve made have been instinctual, fueling fast momentum. Within three months and no budget, we had a prototype in the market.
Instead of the uphill grind I had experienced in my previous founder experiences, I feel like I’m chasing a snowball rapidly accelerating downhill, fueled by the natural momentum. Work no longer feels like a struggle. Instead, it feels like a seamless extension of who I am and what I believe in. I wouldn’t have had the trust to follow this path without my first 1heart retreat.
Deep spiritually driven inner work, has also transformed how I lead teams and connect with others. Although I have always embraced a human-centric approach in my leadership, I find myself listening more deeply and patiently, communicating more authentically and vulnerably, and inspiring others (and myself) with more confidence.
This shift has played a major role in my ability to recruit and motivate exceptional talent. The team that has come together around my new Spirit Tech project in such a short period directly reflects this transformation.
The Measurable Benefits of Going Inward
To better contextualize my own experience, I interviewed 15 other 1heart founder alumni. It was immediately clear that these shifts weren’t just happening to me.
One successful Series A founder described his week at 1heart as “one of the most significant experiences of my life — I understand the meaning of my life now.” He said, “after 1heart, I shifted from fear to confidence in every part of my professional being.” His impact-driven ag-tech startup has experienced exponential growth since his journey.
Another Series-A fintech entrepreneur was initially hesitant, a self-proclaimed skeptical and hyper-rationalist. Dragged to 1heart by his wife, he set his intention simply to “have fun.” But by the end of the experience, he described it as “a factory reset button” that completely reshaped his worldview. He noticed a particularly sharp increase in his creative problem-solving and resilience, which have since transformed how he approaches his business challenges.
A founder of a later-stage company with tens of millions in revenue reflected on the changes in his leadership approach: “I can problem-solve without panic and emotion — I am in flow even in hard moments, making me a much more effective leader.”
Although these are just a few examples, every founder interviewed expressed a transformational impact on their founder toolkit. The diversity in the type of founders interviewed highlights how universal the benefits of this work can be, regardless of where one is in on the founder journey.
I asked each founder to rate themselves on a scale of 1 to 10 across eight key founder skills, before and after attending 1heart. The findings confirmed what I had felt firsthand — a week at 1heart is one of the most impactful things you can do to improve yourself and your ability to lead and execute.
What other seven-day experience can boast an almost 50% increase in leadership skills and a 35% boost in confidence and resilience?
And although hustle decreased by 2%, output increased by 26%. It turns out relentless work for work’s sake isn’t the answer. Actual productivity emerges when effort aligns with purpose.
Of course, this was an informal study with an opportunistic research methodology, and it is important to conduct a more rigorous analysis to explore the long-term effects of this work on leadership and performance before jumping to confident conclusions.
Yet even with these preliminary insights, the patterns strongly suggest that founders who engage in profound personal transformation emerge more effective, grounded, and inspired as people and professionals.
Why This Matters for Founders
Founders are constantly searching for ways to sharpen their edge. Yet, spiritually driven transformation work is often overlooked — even though it can be one of the most effective tools for peak performance.
The misconception that deep inner work is at odds with high achievement prevents many from tapping into their full potential. But the reality is that founders who engage in this work don’t just become better at business; they become more visionary, grounded, charismatic, compassionate, and effective leaders.
Beyond performance, many founders struggle with burnout, stress, and mental exhaustion. Building a company is demanding, and over time, the pressure can erode not only personal well-being but also the culture of the company itself.
When founders heal and grow, it has a ripple effect — improving company dynamics, strengthening human relationships, and fostering an environment that supports long-term success. A deeply aligned and fulfilled founder doesn’t just lead better; they create organizations that thrive.
The Bigger Picture
If more founders and leaders embraced this kind of deep inner work, the impact would go far beyond individual success.
Imagine a world where workplaces were filled with more present, self-aware, and compassionate leaders — where teams felt genuinely valued, and burnout was the exception rather than the norm.
The ripple effects would transform not just companies but the millions of lives touched by those who work within them. As more founders operate from a place of clarity and purpose, businesses would naturally shift toward more altruistic goals. Companies would prioritize impact alongside profit, focusing on creating solutions that uplift society rather than simply maximizing shareholder value. When leaders evolve, the world they shape evolves with them.
For anyone curious to explore more, the 1heart team published a whitepaper on the potential for psychedelics and sacred plant medicines to elevate our leaders and institutions.
If you’re a founder, creator or leader feeling stuck or wondering what’s next — not just for your business, but for you — consider this an invitation to go deeper. Because the most tremendous leverage isn’t in scaling your company, it’s in scaling yourself.
If you are feeling called to do a deep sacred medicine journey and want to learn more about my journey, feel free to reach out on LinkedIn.
