Discussing Psychedelics with Industry Insider Todd Shapiro, CEO & Co-Founder: Red Light Holland
By Anne Parker, Arizona State University
Psychedelics are all over mainstream media these days. Just this week, the Hollywood Reporter released an article about a new TV series being developed around psychedelics. Then this morning, the first thing that popped up in my Twitter feed was an article about a study being conducted at Johns Hopkins University, which seems to indicate a potential for improved neural and cognitive flexibility (the ability to think and react more easily) as a result of psychedelic use.
As an avid fan of natural plant healing, psilocybin has been on my radar for a year. Ever since the “shroom boom” became an investing trend with hopes placed on further decriminalization of psychedelics after the state of Oregon passed Measure 100, which makes personal possession of all drugs punishable by a civic citation (similar to a parking ticket) instead of a misdemeanor.
There’s a lot of buzz around magic mushrooms specifically. Much research is being conducted on their therapeutic benefits for treating PTSD, depression and ADHD, to name just a few conditions. Microdosing has been a protocol in tech circles for years. Creators and coders alike claim that microdosing creates new neural pathways, and promotes a higher degree of problem solving. Evidence is now emerging, which seems to back up that claim.
As someone who personally advocates for plant medicine, and has had their own less than stellar experiences with multitudes of depression medications over the years, this shroom-boom has got me intrigued. I asked around my circle of friends for referrals to anyone that has professional experience in the psychedelics industry, and was quickly connected to Todd Shapiro, Co-Founder and CEO of Red Light Holland, based in my home city of Toronto, Canada.
After some background investigation, what stood out to me about Shapiro was his unorthodox journey from radio broadcasting host to CEO. When asked about it, Shapiro replied that, “It wasn’t really planned out, but it was envisioned. My involvement with past projects that I was truly passionate about led me to the idea to co-found Red Light Holland. It started as an idea that I believed in, and it skyrocketed from there. It was all very organic.” He was convinced of the therapeutic benefits of psilocybin by his own experiences. Shortly after taking his idea to an investor, Red Light Holland became a publicly traded company.
What makes a great CEO? Shapiro attributes his ability to connect with others and convey his passion about his company as being a key trait to success in this current digital media driven climate. Case in point – Elon Musk. Like Musk, Todd is not just the CEO of Red Light Holland, he is the public face of the company and connects with his audience regularly through social media. Online, he’s approachable and shares openly about his family life with his thousands of followers on social media.
Shapiro uses his public platform to promote his message as CEO, which is “the safe, responsible and legal use of psilocybin for recreational use (where legal) as well as it’s therapeutic use as an alternative to traditional manufactured prescription medication.” He calls himself a dreamer, and credits his passion and conviction for what brought him to where he is now.
Shapiro is adamant about psilocybin being used in its natural form and not as a synthetic derivative of psilocin, the substance present in psychoactive mushrooms. Through his interactions with his consumer base, he feels that today’s millennial and younger audience is, “less trusting of big pharma and more interested in a treatment that is natural to the source.” Shapiro believes that psilocybin holds a lot of promise for the treatment of conditions like depression and ADHD over traditional SSRI, MAOI and stimulant medications. Shapiro is an advocate for improved ways of dealing with mental health through alternative means to prescription pills and decriminalizing nature.
Not surprisingly, when I asked about the biggest hurdles facing the further development and decriminalization of psilocybin, Shapiro replied - Big Pharma. Shapiro advocates for improved ways of dealing with mental health through alternative means to prescription pills and decriminalizing nature . That kind of thinking does not sit well with the multibillion-dollar behemoths that profit from treating symptoms with prescription pills, but never curing the root cause.
Not one to be intimidated by momentous goals, Shapiro is tenacious and doesn’t like giving up. He’s also a perfectionist who is his own harshest critic. That combination keeps him striving to always be a better version of himself. Growing up he was surrounded by a lot of high achievers that kept it real, which he credits for keeping him humble. Throughout his life, he would challenge himself to accomplish the things he didn’t feel were possible. He didn’t think he’d one day be a CEO, yet now he’s leading one of the most recognized companies in the psychedelic consumer goods sector. He’s in a competition with himself, to prove himself wrong, to accomplish the unthinkable.
What’s next? Shapiro plans to keep working hard and one day turn Red Light Holland into a billion-dollar market cap company. For the record, I own stocks in Red Light Holland, so I think that’s a fantastic goal!
If you’d like to learn more about Red Light Holland, and their star product Magic Truffles, please check out the link here: https://redlighttruffles.com/
To connect with Todd Shapiro on social media:
Comments