About The Writings

Where bootstrapped founders get the real playbook

Most SaaS advice is written for venture-backed startups with millions in funding and dedicated data teams. The rest of us are left cobbling together strategies from multiple sources, trying to figure out what actually works when you're bootstrapped.

That's exactly why I started The Writings.

Who This Is For

You're a bootstrapped founder, dev agency owner, or marketing agency looking to build recurring revenue. You're making between $0-20k MRR and need practical, tactical advice that actually works when resources are limited.

You don't need another article about raising Series A funding. You need to know how to:

  • Find your first 1000 customers without burning cash

  • Build a sales funnel that converts on a shoestring budget

  • Track the right metrics (not the vanity ones)

  • Scale systematically without breaking your business

  • Hire the right people at the right time

  • Exit with multiples that matter

Who I Am

I'm Nate Ritter, and I've been where you are.

I'm a founder, consultant, and mentor with 3 exits and 20+ years building startups. I've also run a 7-figure agency, so I understand both the SaaS and agency worlds.

More importantly, I've made the expensive mistakes so you don't have to. I once spent $15,000 learning a partnership lesson that I now teach for free. I've built products for the wrong market, scaled too early, and tracked metrics that didn't matter.

What Makes This Different

The Writings isn't just another business blog. Every article is based on real data from companies I've worked with, patterns I've observed across dozens of founders, and frameworks that consistently work for bootstrapped businesses.

You won't find:

  • Generic advice that applies to everyone (and therefore no one)

  • Tactics without the strategic context of why they work

  • Theory without practical implementation steps

  • Success stories from companies with unlimited resources

You will find:

  • Step-by-step frameworks you can implement immediately

  • Real numbers and case studies from bootstrapped companies

  • Honest assessments of what doesn't work (and why)

  • Templates, spreadsheets, and tools you can use today

The Community Behind It

The best insights don't come from me alone—they come from the collective wisdom of founders who are actually building profitable, sustainable businesses.

That's why I also run the Founder Labs Community, a tight-knit group of SaaS indie hackers, solopreneurs, and early-stage startup founders. It's where we test these ideas, share what's working, and help each other get unstuck.

The community is for sub-$20k MRR SaaS founders who need expert guidance to move to the next stage. It's not a networking group—it's a working group focused on getting results.

Join the Founder Labs Community if you're ready to work alongside other bootstrapped founders who are serious about growth.

Why I Write This

After helping hundreds of founders get their teams moving in the right direction, I've noticed the same patterns over and over. The companies that succeed follow remarkably similar playbooks, while those that struggle make predictable mistakes.

My mission is to help early-stage SaaS startup founders with the expert guidance they need to move into the next stage—whether that's finding product-market fit, building sustainable growth systems, or preparing for an exit.

Need more hands-on help? Book a 1:1 session to work through your specific challenges together.

Start Here

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Ready to get unstuck? Subscribe to get tactical frameworks delivered weekly, or join the conversation with other bootstrapped founders who are building sustainable, profitable businesses.

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No fluff. No theory. Just what works.

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Founder Labs is a place for SaaS founders. Written by an ex-7-figure agency owner, 3x-exit founder, and SaaS entrepreneur. Sent irregularly, but always with value.

People

Helping SaaS founders get unstuck, 3 exits, startup advisor, fCTO & founder | Knowledge: writings.founderlabs.io | Community: founderlabs.io/community | 1-on-1 to get unstuck: nateritter.com