A Save-Your-Bacon PSA

Welcome to 2020!

As I returned to my desk last week, I was painfully reminded of an important but often overlooked task. It’d be unkind and irresponsible to not remind you too. (As an Enneagram 1, responsibility is one of my hallmarks.)

Keep reading for the one key task you can’t afford to overlook in your business.

I was grateful to take a couple of weeks off work over Christmas. Part of that was to spend time with my family, relax, and recharge. Another part was to upgrade my “vintage” iMac—that’s Apple’s term, not mine—with a brand new one. This big to-do has been on my list for months, but it’s really difficult to switch machines when I’m in the middle of helping clients launch their new brand. By closing the studio, I was excited to finally get my much-needed upgrade.

With a shiny new computer on my desk, last week was going to be my “ease back into work and get set up for the new year” week.

Until my plans were derailed.

Last Wednesday I sat at the Apple Genius Bar (where all ailing Apple products go for service) for 2 hours while Cyrus tried to solve the mystery of my crashing, painfully slow, brand new iMac. For reference, the average Genius Bar appointment is 15 minutes!

I watched with a pit in my stomach as it became obvious that the only solution was to completely erase the entire machine.

What partly eased my horror was knowing that, in addition to files I had “in the Cloud,” I also had not one but two backups on external drives in my office. (Remember that Enneagram 1 thing?) I say “partly eased” because we all know that those can fail too. In fact, my niece’s backup drive with 10 years of art files corrupted just the week before.

I had no choice but to sign away Apple’s liability in case I couldn’t retrieve my files and watch as Cyrus wiped my new computer back to factory settings. 

Everything was gone.

He helped me get some basic things connected and downloaded, assured me that I’d have no problem transferring files from my Time Machine backup, and sent me on my way. 

I loaded my naked iMac into my car, drove home, and prayed for the best. After a few more hours, I successfully restored all my files, apps, fonts, etc. All in, it took half my week to diagnose, restore, and recover my machine, but it could’ve been so much worse.

If you haven’t guessed yet, here’s my January PSA to help you avoid some potential tears and heartache.

Backup your stuff. 

Regularly. Thoroughly. On a schedule.

This could be personal “stuff” like photos from your last vacation or work “stuff” like client docs, your own logos, and marketing materials.

I’m not going to tell you how or where to do it because everyone has a different setup. It could be in the Cloud or on an external drive. You can run the backup automatically or set a reminder on your calendar. How you do it is less important than actually doing it.

Also, be encouraged if your start to 2020 didn’t go as smoothly as you hoped. It’s ok, and I’m right there with you. It’s only January 15 and there’s a lot of time left in 2020.

Now go do your next thing.

After you backup up your stuff!

You’re welcome. ;)