The Founder Mental Health Survey<br>Skip to main contentFMHS · About ●Confidential · Anonymous · Open source<br>The Founder Mental Health Survey.<br>An open, anonymous research project on what mental health and well-being actually look like for startup founders right now — combining validated clinical screeners with founder-specific dimensions of ambition, motivation, and relationships.<br>Begin the survey~10 min · Anonymous · Survey ends May 31, 2026<br>Why we built thisFounders carry a psychological burden that's mostly invisible — to investors, to employees, to family, often to themselves. Cofounder conflict, identity-merge with the company, money pressure, isolation, the relentless self-judgment.<br>The published research on founder mental health is thin and mostly draws from broader entrepreneur populations. The existing surveys aimed at startup founders are small, not peer-reviewed, and rarely use validated clinical instruments. We wanted something better: a real instrument, taken anonymously, with results shared back to the community.<br>When you see your own results next to other founders', the loneliest stuff stops feeling so unique. You're not the outlier you think you are.

What it measuresValidated clinical screeners, plus founder-specific sections on cofounder relationship, ambition, motivation, help-seeking, and substance use.<br>PHQ-9depressionGAD-7anxietyASRSADHD traitsAQ-10autism spectrum traitsMBI-GSburnout<br>The ambition and life-outlook sections are grounded in Self-Determination Theory and the Aspiration Index — they capture not just how driven you are but why, and what you're driving toward. See our YC version or the general version to take it.

Two versions, one instrumentThe instrument itself is the same in both versions — same clinical screeners, same founder-specific sections, same scoring. The only difference: the YC version asks for your batch (so YC-aggregate results can be reported back to Bookface), and the general version skips that question.<br>If you start one version and your answers suggest the other fits better, we'll quietly offer to switch you over.

How we ensure anonymityResponses are tied to a random access code, not your identity. If you leave an email afterward, it's stored in a separate table with no link back to your answers — even we can't look you up by email.<br>Don't take our word for it: the schema and source are open on GitHub.

Who's behind thisCreated by Jason Shen and Keegan Walden<br>We're founders and coaches working on the question of what it actually takes to build something meaningful without breaking yourself in the process.