FoundersFleet is a private community for founders who are serious about building. We keep it invite-only deliberately — quality over quantity. These guidelines exist to protect that standard and make the community worth being in.
The short version: show up with integrity, give more than you take, and treat every founder's journey with respect.
1. Respect the Founder's Journey
Every founder here is navigating something hard. Some are pre-revenue, some are post-exit. Some are figuring out their idea, others are scaling. Wherever someone is in their journey, treat it with respect.
- Critique ideas, not people.
- Be direct and honest — but kind. Blunt feedback delivered with respect is valuable. Dismissiveness is not.
- No condescension. Everyone started somewhere.
2. What Happens in Squads Stays in Squads
Squads are where founders share real numbers, real problems, and real setbacks. That only works if there's trust. Treat everything shared in a Squad as confidential unless the person explicitly says otherwise.
- Don't share another founder's metrics, strategy, or personal information outside the platform without their permission.
- Don't use information you learn in a Squad to compete with or disadvantage a fellow member.
- What you share about yourself is your call — but once shared, honor others' expectations of privacy.
3. Give First
The best communities are built by people who show up to contribute, not just consume. Before you ask for help, look for ways to offer it.
- Share what you've learned — even the failures. Especially the failures.
- Introduce people when you see a good connection.
- Show up for your squad. Consistency matters more than being the most experienced person in the room.
4. No Solicitation
FoundersFleet is not a sales channel. Members are here to build, not to be pitched.
- Don't use direct messages or squad conversations to cold pitch your product or service.
- Sharing what you're working on is great — that's different from pitching to sell.
- If someone asks for a vendor or tool recommendation, that's a natural opportunity to mention what you offer. Unsolicited pitches are not.
- No multi-level marketing, affiliate spam, or bulk promotional messages.
5. Be Honest
Trust is the foundation of this community. Don't misrepresent yourself, your startup, your traction, or your credentials.
- Your profile should accurately reflect who you are and where your startup is.
- Don't claim advisors, investors, or partnerships you don't have.
- It's okay to be early. It's not okay to pretend you're further along than you are.
6. Zero Tolerance
The following will result in immediate removal from the platform with no warning:
- Harassment, threats, or personal attacks of any kind.
- Discriminatory language or behavior based on race, gender, sexuality, religion, nationality, disability, or any other protected characteristic.
- Sharing explicit, illegal, or harmful content.
- Any attempt to defraud, deceive, or harm another member.
- Unauthorized use of another member's intellectual property or confidential information.
7. Enforcement
We take guidelines seriously but try to handle issues with proportionality. For most violations we'll start with a warning and a conversation. Repeated or serious violations will result in suspension or permanent removal.
We reserve the right to remove any content or member that we believe harms the community, at our discretion.
8. Report a Problem
If you experience or witness behavior that violates these guidelines, please reach out. We take reports seriously and handle them with discretion.
foundersfleet@eightbitstudios.com