WEBVTT - Don't press your luck with tech 

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is not to press your luck when it

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<v Speaker 1>comes to technology. Don't wait for things to fail before

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<v Speaker 1>repairing or replacing them, and make sure that if something

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<v Speaker 1>were to fail, you've got a backup plan in place

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<v Speaker 1>so you can keep moving forward. Long time listeners know

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<v Speaker 1>that I am a pretty frugal person. I finally threw

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<v Speaker 1>away some socks that had holes in them. My car

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<v Speaker 1>is older than three of my kids. I put water

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<v Speaker 1>into the soap dispensers to use up the last little bit.

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<v Speaker 1>I want my stuff to last, and I like to

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<v Speaker 1>use stuff as long as I can. This is good

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<v Speaker 1>for the pocketbook, good for the environment, and well satisfying

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<v Speaker 1>to avoid waste. So I'm always tempted to just keep

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<v Speaker 1>using my work equipment as long as I can. And

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<v Speaker 1>in general, I have been able to keep using my

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<v Speaker 1>laptops for many years, but I have had some close

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<v Speaker 1>calls and I have begun to suspect that my current

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<v Speaker 1>laptop might be entering the twilight phase of its useful life.

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<v Speaker 1>So I am reminding myself that it is important to

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<v Speaker 1>prepare for and budget for this possibility. That's because having

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<v Speaker 1>holes in your socks is one thing, but having an

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<v Speaker 1>important work tool fail is something completely different. I use

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<v Speaker 1>my laptop every day to do my job, to write,

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<v Speaker 1>to record podcasts like this one, to get virtual speaking engagements.

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<v Speaker 1>If my laptop fails, I'm not working. If I do

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<v Speaker 1>the math, I can figure out that I don't need

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<v Speaker 1>to miss much work. Before it would have been pennywise

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<v Speaker 1>and pound foolish not to figure something else out. Waiting

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<v Speaker 1>for failure is not a wise choice. Of course. That

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't mean you have to immediately go out and buy

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<v Speaker 1>a new laptop or a new phone at the first

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<v Speaker 1>hint of a problem, but it does mean you should

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<v Speaker 1>figure out ways to keep offering your services reliably whatever

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<v Speaker 1>does happen, and to make sure that you don't tempt

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<v Speaker 1>fate by saying, hey, the computer usually does come back

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<v Speaker 1>on after I restarted a few times, so it's all good.

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<v Speaker 1>Right for starters, be sure you can depend on your

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<v Speaker 1>system for backing up your files. If your computer fails unexpectedly,

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<v Speaker 1>at least you'll still have your data. You can replace technology,

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<v Speaker 1>but your data might be irreplaceable. Once you know your

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<v Speaker 1>information is safe. Think through what equipment you need to

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<v Speaker 1>do your job. Your specific needs may vary, but for

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<v Speaker 1>most of us, the computer is the most essential tool.

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<v Speaker 1>If you are self employed and work primarily on your laptop,

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<v Speaker 1>consider what you would do if it were out of

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<v Speaker 1>commission for a half day or a week, Or what

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<v Speaker 1>if it took several weeks for a new computer or

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<v Speaker 1>computer part to be delivered. I mean, you might be

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<v Speaker 1>able to just go to the Apple store and get

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<v Speaker 1>a new one, but maybe not. So what else have

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<v Speaker 1>you got? In my case, when I did have a

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<v Speaker 1>week long repair in the summer of twenty nineteen, I

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<v Speaker 1>used my family's desktop, the one the kids used for gaming,

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<v Speaker 1>to keep writing and sending those word files to people.

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<v Speaker 1>It was definitely not my favorite option, but it worked.

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<v Speaker 1>We also have an iPad that the kids have as

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<v Speaker 1>a backup for virtual learning. I could use that for

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<v Speaker 1>speaking or zoom calls in general. How about you. Do

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<v Speaker 1>you have an old computer you could use? Could you

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<v Speaker 1>borrow a family member's computer? Could you use a tablet

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<v Speaker 1>for some functions? If so, maybe try a test run

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<v Speaker 1>sometime to make sure you're good. Figure out how you'd

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<v Speaker 1>get all your files if your laptop automatically remembers all

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<v Speaker 1>your passwords, and you've forgotten them and don't have them anywhere, Well,

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<v Speaker 1>maybe figure out some way you can access at least

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<v Speaker 1>the major stuff. You can also plan ahead when it

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<v Speaker 1>comes to device life cycle and cost. Figure out how

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<v Speaker 1>long the devices you rely on typically last. For instance,

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<v Speaker 1>I just googled how long does a MacBook Pro last?

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<v Speaker 1>And I learned that seven years is a reasonable expectation.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm just at five now, but that's closer to seven

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<v Speaker 1>than say, two years. If you see that you are

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<v Speaker 1>starting to get close, you can start setting aside money

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<v Speaker 1>now for a replacement, and, just like you would with

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<v Speaker 1>a car, monitor how things seem to be running. If

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<v Speaker 1>your laptop and other devices are starting to act buggy,

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<v Speaker 1>don't just shrug it off it. Maybe find you something

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<v Speaker 1>like your hair dryer until it gives out before even

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<v Speaker 1>considering getting a new one. Because leaving home with wet

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<v Speaker 1>hair on one day is not a big deal, but

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<v Speaker 1>having your technology fail when you're on deadline for an

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<v Speaker 1>important project kind of is a big deal. So don't

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<v Speaker 1>press your luck. Your clients count on you, and you

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<v Speaker 1>want to be able to count on your tools. So

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<v Speaker 1>back things up, make a backup plan, and take care

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<v Speaker 1>of maintenance. That way, you're more likely to keep emergencies

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<v Speaker 1>at bay. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening,

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<v Speaker 1>and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod.

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<v Speaker 1>That's B the number four, then Breakfast p o D.

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<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>podcast at iHeart media dot com. That Before Breakfast is

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<v Speaker 1>spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much, I

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<v Speaker 1>look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a

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<v Speaker 1>production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from I

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<v Speaker 1>heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.