Last quarter, I was professionally paralyzed when I decided to update my iMac software to OS X El Capitan. Little did I know, that one little click of a button on my computer would be the equivalent of pouring an entire pot of coffee directly into every one of its ports. My computer literally died on me.

After I traveled back and forth to the Apple Store in Madison five times in one week to try to get it fixed and then replaced due to its premature death, I considered holding a private ceremony and burial. I even shed a few tears (mostly in frustration from the ridiculous wait times I encountered when scheduling time with a qualified Apple store technician). But, as with every one of life’s challenges, I tried to look at the bright side of things.

All was not lost. Because I took the advice of a computer specialist I befriended long ago, I  had an external drive to back up my data, which was my saving grace. After my work week from hell, I resolved to prosthelytize to every professional I came across the importance of a backup plan—not only for your data and your software, but also for your hardware.

If something happens to your computer system and you are unable to access any information, will you be prepared? Will you be able to check your email? Can you access the files you need for the next hour, the next day, or the entire week, if something caused a shut-down this very minute? Do you back up your information to the Cloud or an offsite server or a local drive that can easily be retrieved?

My advice to you is figure it out today, make a backup plan in case you are ever without your computer like I was, or be forever traumatized.