What the Speedee process did was eliminate every possible wasted second. People weren't impressed with the burger itself, and they were impressed with how fast the burgers were ready. Today the fast-food industry is a 647.7 BILLION dollar industry. Why? Because time is money and their food is fast.

Clearly, we're an IT service provider, and I'm not here to sell you a franchise or get you into the fast-food industry but to demonstrate how shaving a few seconds off here and there can improve productivity. Every single second counts. In my last blog, I talk about using the calendar for better time management. This time we're killing two birds with one stone, we're addressing security and time.

Is your password security managed by one of those little books in the first or second drawer on the right-hand side of your desk?

Funny story, I visited THREE clients this past week that had just that. Now you might not be running a Fortune 500 company, and you think you don't have much to hide. But if you can write down your password, then it's already weak and insecure. Because who's really going to have ":3jJAk^,L8g>/-a?" as their password? Why not? Because it would be a pain in the a** to type that in every time. But THREE people in one week? I'm willing to bet some of you do too, and you're thinking, "Well...crap." What would happen if someone stole that book? Do you have a backup? What if they logged into every account and changed the password on everything? How can I make my password security issues a thing of the past? That'd be a REAL nightmare. What's worse? It's EASY for it to happen.

So you don't keep your password in a book in a desk drawer because you're smarter than that, and you're free and clear. Right? Not so fast. Do you have a Word document or an Excel file called "Passwords/Vendors/Accounts" that you share with your employees so they can log in to different vendors or even banking portals? What would happen if that file were copied to a USB stick? What if you got ransomware, and they downloaded that file?

Did you know that ransomware doesn't always encrypt your files, but they can STEAL your data too, INCLUDING THAT PASSWORD FILE!

Okay, so you're caught with your pants down, and you're vulnerable and a bit uneasy (or you should be). What do you do?

Simple. Password Managers.

Password managers can be an excellent addition to your own "Speedee" system, making password security issues a thing of the past. Not only would you not have to open up the Excel or Word file or get your handy-dandy password notebook, but you wouldn't have to type in passwords manually anymore.

But what's even better is you can share those passwords with your employees without actually having to share the actual password! For example, let's say you have an employee that needs to order supplies from Staples. But you don't want them to know the actual password. They can pull up Staples's website and go to the login page, and the password manager will prompt them to enter the details for them. They wouldn't even know what the password is.

The top 7 BIG password security issues I see every day are:

• Have a common standardized password for your organization (CompanyNameYearEstablished!)
• Having handwritten passwords in a book or ANYWHERE
• Having a password File or Folder (even if that file is password protected, it's likely NOT encrypted)
• Outdated password lists (an employee had to change a password, and they forgot to update the file)
• Sharing logins with employees
• Employees have YOUR company passwords stored on Google Chrome linked to their personal Gmail account
• Owners don't have access to ALL of their passwords

With a password security manager, we solve ALL of these issues! Not all password managers are created equal, ESPECIALLY if you're a business with employees that need to log in to different sites. You need one that allows you to delegate permissions and control access to your password list.

Here's a crazy guarantee I have for you. I guarantee you that our password manager will pay for itself, with the time you save. If you're unhappy with our password manager within 90 days, I will refund 100% of your money back. No questions asked.

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Just when you thought your emails were the most important thing to running your business...

This blog is a little different because it's about TRULY making tech WORK FOR YOU. We're in a day where Facebook practically can read our minds or even seemingly listen to our conversations and have ads about something you were just talking to a friend about the other day. We're here to streamline your workflow, and the Outlook calendar app could be the tool that changes your day-to-day in an amazing way.

So...Why not have technology work to your advantage?

Have you ever wondered how those crazy busy, successful business owners do it? You know, the one I'm talking about, right? The one manages to make it to their kids' soccer game, attend the PTA meetings, get work done, and be on time to meet with the CPA. They have to be some kind of superhero or have superpowers to juggle all that, right?

Wrong! The sad part is the "secret" has been in front of me for ages since I first started working in IT. I vividly remember on a job back in 2006 doing IT support for a realtor. She was adamant about having her calendar sync with her Outlook calendar and her Palm Pilot (yeah, I know, AGES ago, right?) remotely. Being a full-time mom and running a successful and thriving real estate business, she wasn't nearly as interested in her emails or even her contacts syncing.

You'd think the most important thing on your smartphone would be your contacts or your emails...but you're WRONG.

NOW I get it. Fifteen years later (a real facepalm moment), I fully understand what that realtor was doing, and it was a trend I saw with every successful business owner. Next time, test it for yourself. When you plan something personal or business, 9 times out of 10, if they're a successful business owner, they will pull out their smartphone and say, "Let me put it on my calendar." It seems a bit strange to do in person, at first, but as you get used to asking people for a moment of their time while adding them to your calendar you'll see a much more productive week and a more positive response from clients when you don't forget a meeting ever again.

But what's so special about that?

What's the MOST valuable thing in the world, and everyone doesn't have enough of it? Time. We waste lots of time planning, not getting things done, and forgetting things. It's time to put everything you need to do on an Outlook calendar, and set a deadline! The best advice I was told from a marketing expert was, "If you don't set a finite amount of time, you will spend an infinite amount of time not getting it done." Put EVERYTHING on there, a doctor's appointment a year from now? Put it on the calendar! Your weekly run with your friends? Put it on the Outlook calendar. EVERYTHING ON YOUR CALENDAR. Not just business hours or business-related stuff put it all in your calendar!

Why sync my Outlook calendar with my computer if I keep my phone with me all the time?

If your computer and your phone's calendar are in sync, you can share them with your staff or assistant. Clients can book directly from your website to speak with you, just as I did at the bottom of this page. Your team can schedule your appointments accordingly, and you don't have to cancel/reschedule because of that doctor's appointment that you forgot to block out. Not to mention, what happens if you lose your phone, or it gets damaged?  Chances are if it's not already syncing, there's a good chance your phone isn't backing up either. That's a BIG no no in our industry and it should be one for you as well.

TIPS

• Set up recurring events for things that happen regularly. Example: If you cycle every Tuesday at 6:30 PM, set it up to be on your Outlook calendar every Tuesday at 6:30 PM. You can delete one-off events should you need to skip an event.

• Use it to fight procrastination! And don't skip the small stuff. Your desk has been messy for a while, right? You've meant to clean it for some time. Put it on your Outlook calendar to block out 30-45 minutes to clean your desk.

• Set a time to fill your calendar for tomorrow. Nobody likes an unproductive day. Get things set on your Outlook calendar for tomorrow, and get it filled up with productive things to do. You're a business owner. Do you really not have anything to do at all?

• Be diligent. Fill out your calendar every day. If there's a day you didn't open your calendar, then you're already not using it to your full advantage. You're only cheating yourself.

• Share your calendar! Share it with your staff. You don't have to share the details, and it can simply say you're busy/not busy. It will help your team schedule calls for you and not interrupt your day.

• Don't be scared to schedule in advance. I personally have a client that I have a meeting with, 4 months later in September. It's not set to a specific day, but I have it on my calendar on the last Tuesday of August to reach out and coordinate a particular date with that client. I'm pretty sure that the client is going to be impressed that I remembered!

We understand running a business is complicated and challenging. We're a small business ourselves, and fortunately, we're able to support hundreds of companies with automation and having technology work FOR US.

If technology isn't working FOR YOU, then it may be time for a chat. Feel free to schedule a free discovery call below to find out if we can help your business run more efficiently. We know running a small business is a challenge no one is ready for, but we're here to help! Don't be scared.