Laura Roeder is the founder of Edgar, a new social media automation tool designed to prevent updates from going to waste. Laura began her entrepreneurial journey at the age of 22, when she quit a design job and decided to launch her first business. Since then, she founded B-School with Marie Forleo, has run successful courses of her own such as Creating Fame and Social Media Marketer; and she was named a Top 100 Entrepreneur under 30, in America. Edgar was created out of a need Laura had in her own business to more effectively manage social media – and so in 2014, Laura pivoted her business to dive into the SaaS world. Since launching in mid-2014, Edgar has hit over $150,000 in monthly recurring revenue, all the while bootstrapping the entire way. More than 3,000 customers are now using Edgar to help manage their social media.
Playing Small MomentLaura always felt self-conscious, because she looked too young. She would go to various chamber of commerce events where she did not typically meet anyone close to her own age. Laura always felt like she stuck out. She attended a speed-coaching program at a conference where the coach laid into her and picked her apart – she needed to change her clothes and her voice. Eventually, Laura realized she had lived through her biggest fear and was not changed by it; she had survived.
The Wake Up CallWhen Laura first moved to LA, she was doing social media consulting and helped her friend – an actor on Heroes – create a presence on social media. She walked home after a brainstorming meeting, realizing she didn’t fit into the mold she had created for that route.
Style of LeadershipLaura leads by giving ownership and letting her team truly own their projects. Most people start out by delegating but you’re still doing a lot. The way Laura leads, she has someone in charge of Customer Service and that person gets to make all the calls for their domain.
What Are You Excited About?Laura is excited about Edgar, which launched a year ago. Edgar has grown super fast and they are now hiring a bunch of people. Meetedgar.com is a new approach to social media that handles your content differently than anything else out there.
Leadership PracticeUsing a quarterly survey to ask, what should we stop doing, what should we keep doing, and what should we start doing allows employees to share their opinions on an ongoing systems.
Book to Develop LeadershipIgnore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity, by Hugh MacLeod
What Would You Change?Focusing more time on the things she enjoys; bringing more value to her business.
Inspirational Quote"How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives." ~ Annie Dillard
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