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This is a guest post by Ivo Dator

Technological advances in society have increased efficiency and effectiveness in both the workplace and in our personal lives. The growth of special tools allows entrepreneurs the ability to scale their work efforts over many platforms with assistance from technological gadgets and software. But aside from this entire magical boost from technology, how much of it is really dependable? And why are we so quick to get angry when it doesn’t work in our favour?

As I write this article I know that there is a possibility that my computer may unexpectedly crash. I know that the external hard drive which harbours all of my important files may accidentally erase everything. Now you may ask yourself, why on earth do I and so many others put so much trust into these gadgets? Because we acknowledge that its performance is generally consistent.

The consistency associated with a certain piece of software, or gadget allows us to place a major stake of trust in that item; this is a major factor as to why we use these items. We trust that the iPad we recently purchased will work as specified. We also trust that the cell phone we’re using in order to make an important sales call will not break down.

The problem with placing too much trust on something is that we usually end up taking it for granted. We automatically assume and take for granted that when we turn on our computer, the Internet will work. Among other things, we take for granted that our Anti-Virus software will heed off any potential threats to our system. As soon as glitches and/or our items break down we are quick to get angery, but why? Because these items just broke the trust that was established.

Well, what can we do? Each and every day more and more technological advancements have been made in order to make our lives easier. Unfortunately, technology has the tendency to break down – it’s inevitable. The problem is that when these important items break down, not a lot of people have a back-up plan for the gadgets and software they’re using. As a result, we incur a loss of time and money replacing the item. So the question is, should we have a back-up plan if something bad would occur? The answer, yes.

Our lives are moving at a fast pace and as a society, we are busier than ever. By ensuring that backups are in place, we’re not only ensuring our success, but also ensuring the consistency and speed of our own operations. For instance, instead of just having an external hard drive, it would probably be a good idea to have a plan B if that would break down which is to purchase virtual space. Also, if our phone would break down, maybe it would be a good idea to purchase an additional low cost phone while our primary phone gets serviced (in most cases service providers hand out loaner phones – but it’s best to check with your provider beforehand).

Sure these are all extra costs, but they serve as a foundation of stability that lessens our headaches should our technological gadgets or software turn faulty. Now, I understand that if you’re building a lean start-up or are on a strict budget, it would not be rational to purchase extra equipment. However, there are plenty of options to purchase quality back-ups at a cheap price, but that’s for another topic. To sum it up, think of these purchases as technological “insurance”. You have insurance for your car, your house; why not purchase “insurance” for your own technological devices?

The 4 questions you need to ask yourselves are:

What’s my plan B?
Am I prepared?
Where are my most important documents backed up?
Do I have a back up to that back up?

Even the mere practice of asking these questions will give you a clear assessment as to whether or not it would be a good idea to get additional equipment and lessen any headaches you may encounter in the future.

Ivo Dator is the Founder of Innoveight Media, an online niche content company; currently in development. He is passionate about emerging technology and the hustle. He’s also an advocate of underdogs and risk takers. For more information, please visit him on Twitter @ivodee.

Further reading:

Interview With David Risley On Different Aspects Of Technology

Poor Technology Can Be A Security Risk

How To Put An End To Your Slow Computer

Where We Would Be Had Technology Not Advanced

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