Alicia Rodriguez

Building my own Startup as a Solo Software Founder |
👩🏼‍💻 Software Engineer
📽️ Coding Content Creator

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

agent challenge

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

I just published a tutorial where I build a full-stack service discovery app using Next.js + Firecrawl, and showed how LLMs can be used as part of a data pipeline (not just for chat) for reasoning, extraction, and structure.

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

I’ve been using Firecrawl to speed up deep research and build a solid data backbone. What was taking me months of manual digging, I now do it in hours using their AI Agent. Huge time saver.
Try for FREE: https://t.co/qqqHD9dmm2
agent challenge

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

If you’ve ever looked at a list online and thought, "This should be an APP"
I built exactly that https://t.co/VN0OVAFghZ

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

Some people are in their launch era.

I’m in my building in silence era.

Figuratively, and fully.

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

Your first idea might be emotionally charged.

But branding isn’t about how it sounds.

It’s about what it means.

And what it stands for.

For long term.

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

The goal isn’t just to build a SaaS.

It’s to build something that matters, to the right people, in the right place, for the long run.

And.. to save them money

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

Your “perfect” name might be wrong

Don’t get attached to how it sounds

Get attached to what it stands for

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

If your brand can change in a week…

You probably weren’t that aligned with the old one.

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

Don’t wait until your app is “almost ready” to buy the domain.

By then it might cost $3,000 instead of $11.

Buy it early.

Even if you’re not sure.

It’s your digital land grab.

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

@somanymangoes Thanks! haha 😅

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

Never thought I’d be building all this solo (a software product). If you’ve been there, what surprised you most about designing everything from scratch? #startupdiary

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

@ZOOOOOOOEYYYY I am really glad :)

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

@iyoushetwt 20 minutes ago 😆

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

2. I’m actually glad I waited. Because my commitment to the prev branding & location wasn’t as strong as I thought
Now, I am committed t the new vision. So I didn’t wait
I bought the new domain for 10 years (it's surprisingly really cheap)
That’s how certain I am
Now it’s real

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

What started as a joke turned into a 6 month more development time.

And I’m so glad it did.

#SoloFounderDiary

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

4 days later, I committed to the new direction and bought the domain.

And in the process, I realised 2 things:

1. If you’re commited buy the domain early.
Some companies literally track ideas and buy domains just to resell them. You can go from paying $11/y to paying $3000

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

I’ve been building a SaaS app since early this year.
Clear niche. Clear problem. Even the “perfect” name.
It was supposed to be low-stress, high reward. A win-win. Or so I thought....

[Alicia Rodriguez @time_tocode]

Fun fact: Storing 1GB on AWS S3 costs less than a coffee, but getting your data out can be 10x that. The kind of detail you only notice when you’re actually the one paying the bill… #startupdiary #systemdesigndiary #SoftwareDevelopment