littlefish — by Laura Roeder

Stories, advice and shortcuts from the founder of MeetEdgar and Paperbell.

A Week in The Life of a Claudepilled Marketing Founder Feb 22, 2026
Over the past month I’ve been claudepilled hard and have become a power user of claude code in vscode . . . but not to work on software…
We Deleted All Meetings and Deploy These 4 Simple Systems Instead Feb 25, 2025
If you haven’t read part one of how we built a 7-figure company with zero meetings, start here.
5 Years Without Meetings Feb 13, 2025
Don’t Build the SaaS Around the Audience, Build the Audience Around the SaaS Feb 13, 2024
From 2007–2015 I ran what were then called “infoproduct” businesses. Businesses where I was the thought leader, and I created online…
My Top to Bottom System For Running a 7-Figure, Bootstrapped Business Part-Time Feb 6, 2023
Productivity systems. Make ’em fancy, make ’em simple. At the end of the day they need to achieve one thing — making sure the reality of…
No, Wealth is Not a Measure of Value Creation Nov 7, 2022
If you’ve been around the entrepreneur “motivational” space for a while I can guarantee you’ve heard this type of maxim before:
Bootstrapped Founder? Don’t Do Your Own Support. Jul 21, 2022
As a bootstrapped founder, doing your own customer service comes with the territory. When you first launch you just have to, and then it…
Exactly How I Cold Emailed My Way to A Life-Changing Exit (And You Can Too) Jan 18, 2022
At the end of 2021, I sold my bootstrapped SaaS business MeetEdgar.
The Top 45 Narrative Non-Fiction Podcasts that AREN’T About Murder Sep 20, 2021
I love podcasts, but I hate interview podcasts. I know, it’s weird! But I can’t be the only one.
How I Raised $300k in 30 Days (And Why I Went to the Dark Side After Being a Hardcore Bootstrapper) Mar 28, 2021
This article was initially published on the Ropig blog on February 15, 2018. Ropig was ultimately shuttered in 2018, you can hear that…
You Get What You Go For Oct 13, 2020
I recently did a double-take when I saw the news story that a pair of self-made brothers were purchasing Asda.
How I Nabbed The .Com for My Bootstrapped Startup Without Spending a Million Bucks May 18, 2020
Have you read those “here’s how we got the .com” sagas?
The 10-Month Year for Coaches Jan 20, 2020
After I retired from my business, the questions poured in about how I did it. It was a long process over 5 years but one key to making…
Why I quit trying to make it work. Jan 13, 2017
Does something you’re doing for your business feel really hard? Like a constant uphill battle? Like you have to hustle your face off before…
How “Empowering” Your Team Is Stressing Everyone Out Oct 25, 2016
There’s a big trend lately of giving people total freedom at work. Makes sense on paper — the people on your team are grownups who can make…
How Founder Bias Is Poisoning Your Team Aug 19, 2016
The Danger of “Single Point of Failure” Hiring
How to Customize Slack So It Stops Murdering Your Productivity Mar 7, 2016
Not gonna lie — dumping Slack can be a pretty tempting idea. My social media startup relies on it a lot (and I mean a lot), but it can also…
I’m a Woman in Tech, But Even I Didn’t “Get It” Until This Week Jan 25, 2016
After 10 years as a business owner, I encountered a specific kind of sexism this week that I’ve actually never come across before.
Honesty in Search Results: Why We Decided Not to Offer an Affiliate Program Aug 17, 2015
For a lot of businesses, choosing to offer an affiliate marketing program is pretty easy.
Why We Stopped Assigning Deadlines — and Started Getting More Done Because of It Aug 14, 2015
If you’ve ever missed a deadline, you’re not alone.
Why Zirtual’s Demise Makes Me Glad I Turned Down Millions in Funding Aug 13, 2015
When I launched my social media software company in 2014, I had to make a very important decision: to self-fund, or go out for funding
How Being Nice is Killing Your Shot At Success Jan 28, 2014
(And how I changed my nice girl ways.)