How to Help a Founder in Crisis
If you're here, someone you care about is going through one of the hardest experiences of their life. You want to help but you're not sure how. These guides are for the people around founders: friends, family, partners, investors, and co-founders who want to do the right thing.
The people around a founder in crisis matter more than they realise
When a founder's business fails, the focus (understandably) is on the founder. But the people around them are dealing with their own version of the crisis. Partners are navigating shared financial exposure and an emotionally absent spouse. Friends are watching someone they care about withdraw and don't know what to say. Co-founders are trying to support a struggling partner while also managing the business. Investors are balancing fiduciary duty with genuine concern for someone's wellbeing.
Most of these people get zero support. There's no playbook for "my friend's startup just collapsed and they've stopped returning my calls." The few resources that exist are written for professional counsellors, not for ordinary people trying to help someone they love.
These guides fill that gap. They cover what to say (and what definitely not to say), how to offer practical help without being patronising, when to worry about someone's mental health, and how to refer someone to professional support when they won't ask for it themselves. They're written with empathy for both sides: the founder going through it, and the person trying to help.
Looking after someone in crisis is draining. These guides also acknowledge that. You matter in this equation too.
What you'll find here
Your friend's business just failed. Here's how to actually help.
What to say, what not to say, and what to do: practical guidance for anyone supporting a founder through business failure.
12 min readSupporting your partner through business failure
When your spouse or partner's business collapses: the financial reality, the emotional toll, and how to be supportive without losing yourself in the process.
12 min readWhat not to say to someone whose business is failing
A guide to the well-intentioned phrases that actually make things worse, and what to say instead.
12 min readFor investors: when your portfolio founder is in crisis
What to do when a founder you've backed is struggling, beyond the board meeting, beyond the metrics, as a human.
12 min readFor co-founders: when your business partner is falling apart
How to support a co-founder in crisis while also managing the business, your own stress, and the possibility that the company might not survive.
12 min readHow to refer someone to help when they won't ask for it themselves
Practical approaches for getting someone to accept support, without being pushy, without making them feel broken, and without damaging the relationship.
12 min readYou can point someone you care about to Fortitude. We'll never contact them without their knowledge.
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