In the beginning stages of starting my self-funded search.
March 06, 2025
by a searcher from Tulane University - A. B. Freeman School of Business in Dallas, TX, USA
Any good tools/tips for getting starting with the process, and staying organized and efficient?
from Bard College in San Francisco, CA, USA
The bootstrapping process has involved a lot of research and learning for me, so intaking and organizing information from different sources so I can leverage it later has been crucial.
We all consume a torrent of content in this day and age; you can leverage this to your advantage by consuming the right type of content and by having buckets to capture the flow.
The dashboard I built serves two functions: first as a place I can save information in (a series of buckets), then as a workshop I can build things in. The information I have collected serves as the "raw materials/input" for my creative process, which means I never have blank page syndrome, and I always have a wealth of high-quality sources (other people's experiences) to work from when building out my business and making decisions.
Notion is great for this, as opposed to something like Google Drive, because of how it allows you to build flexible databases which can be as simple or as complex as you want.
from University of Akron in Columbus, OH, USA
Copper CRM: To track deal leads and follow-ups
. Dropbox: For document storage.
Google Suite: For email, spreadsheets, and documents.
ZoomInfo: For evaluating offer market deals.
Website: As a central hub for my search activities
. I manage all of these for around $100 per month, which works well for me as a solo searcher, where keeping costs down is key. Hope this helps, and best of luck with your search!