Why I Would Never Become a TELEP Network Member (And Other Lies Founders Tell Themselves)

Let’s cut to the chase. You’re a founder. You’re busy building the next big thing—impact-driven, locally-rooted, beautifully underfunded. You’ve got dreams, deliverables, and donors who ghost more than Tinder matches. So when someone asks you to join a network, your brain short-circuits just a little.

“Another membership? For what? I’m already in six WhatsApp groups and a secret Facebook group I never visit. What could another network possibly do for me?”

Glad you asked. But first, let’s address the main reasons founders like you (and, honestly, like me) might roll their eyes at the idea of joining anything:

1. “I don’t have time.”

Sure. You also don’t have time to eat, sleep, or pee in peace, but you still do it because… survival. The right network isn’t about draining your time—it’s about making the little time you do have more impactful. Imagine not having to reinvent the proposal wheel, or not screaming into the funding void alone. Tempting, no?

2. “I’m tired of performative spaces.”

Valid. Nobody wants to be the token founder trotted out for photos and then ghosted when it’s time to actually share power or resources. That’s not a network—that’s exploitation dressed in kente cloth. The membership we’re talking about isn’t about optics; it’s about ownership. It centers your voice, your needs, your realities. Not just once a year during “Africa Month.”

3. “I get more value being outside the system.”

Ah yes, the noble rebel founder. Outside the system. Disrupting everything. Alone. Tired. Slightly bitter. Listen, I love a good revolution too, but sometimes joining a community doesn’t mean selling out—it means plugging in. To real talk. Real tools. Real solidarity. Not just vibes and vague Twitter threads.

4. “I don’t want to pay to join.”

Neither do I. But sometimes, investing a little opens the door to a whole lot more: shared resources, visibility, funder access, and—dare I say it—joy. (Yes, joy. You deserve that too.) And if the fee’s a dealbreaker, let’s talk. No founder left behind because of coin.

5. “I don’t need more Zoom calls.”

Neither do we. If I never hear “You’re on mute” again, I’ll die happy. Which is why this network prioritizes low-lift, high-value engagement. Think bite-sized learning, micro-collabs, and the occasional actual in-person thing (remember those?). No pressure to show up as your most polished self—we like the real you better anyway.

So why join?

Because you’re not supposed to do this alone. Because collective muscle makes funders tremble and systems shift. Because proximity isn’t just geography—it’s shared experience, shared struggle, shared strategy. And because sometimes, we just need a safe space to say, “I’m tired,” and have someone respond, “Me too, but let’s keep going. Together.”

Joining this network isn’t about more work. It’s about working smarter. It’s not about joining a club. It’s about co-creating a force. A space where founders like you—radical, exhausted, brilliant—can be resourced, heard, and unapologetically centered.

So don’t join. Unless, of course, you want to be part of something that doesn’t just see you, but stands with you.

In which case… welcome home.