diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 63bb0ecb66..713c750779 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -7,21 +7,35 @@ Welcome! We're happy to have you here. Thank you in advance for your contributio
 > This guide is for Ruff. If you're looking to contribute to ty, please see [the ty contributing
 > guide](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/blob/main/crates/ty/CONTRIBUTING.md).
 
-## The Basics
+## Finding ways to help
 
-Ruff welcomes contributions in the form of pull requests.
+We label issues that would be good for a first time contributor as
+[`good first issue`](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues?q=is%3Aopen+is%3Aissue+label%3A%22good+first+issue%22).
+These usually do not require significant experience with Rust or the Ruff code base.
 
-For small changes (e.g., bug fixes), feel free to submit a PR.
+We label issues that we think are a good opportunity for subsequent contributions as
+[`help wanted`](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues?q=is%3Aopen+is%3Aissue+label%3A%22help+wanted%22).
+These require varying levels of experience with Rust and Ruff. Often, we want to accomplish these
+tasks but do not have the resources to do so ourselves.
 
-For larger changes (e.g., new lint rules, new functionality, new configuration options), consider
-creating an [**issue**](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues) outlining your proposed change.
-You can also join us on [Discord](https://discord.com/invite/astral-sh) to discuss your idea with the
-community. We've labeled [beginner-friendly tasks](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues?q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aopen+label%3A%22good+first+issue%22)
-in the issue tracker, along with [bugs](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues?q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aopen+label%3Abug)
-and [improvements](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues?q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aopen+label%3Aaccepted)
-that are ready for contributions.
+You don't need our permission to start on an issue we have labeled as appropriate for community
+contribution as described above. However, it's a good idea to indicate that you are going to work on
+an issue to avoid concurrent attempts to solve the same problem.
 
-If you have suggestions on how we might improve the contributing documentation, [let us know](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/discussions/5693)!
+Please check in with us before starting work on an issue that has not been labeled as appropriate
+for community contribution. We're happy to receive contributions for other issues, but it's
+important to make sure we have consensus on the solution to the problem first.
+
+Outside of issues with the labels above, issues labeled as
+[`bug`](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff/issues?q=is%3Aopen+is%3Aissue+label%3A%22bug%22) are the
+best candidates for contribution. In contrast, issues labeled with `needs-decision` or
+`needs-design` are _not_ good candidates for contribution. Please do not open pull requests for
+issues with these labels.
+
+Please do not open pull requests for new features without prior discussion. While we appreciate
+exploration of new features, we will often close these pull requests immediately. Adding a
+new feature to ruff creates a long-term maintenance burden and requires strong consensus from the ruff
+team before it is appropriate to begin work on an implementation.
 
 ### Prerequisites