I cannot tell you how many friends, colleagues, and clients have told me that they have lost data/files that they had not backed up. A few of them have had laptops or flash drives stolen while others have had hard drives fail. Two of my friends have had their laptops stolen in the airport or on the airplane. It is so easy to look away for just a moment. That moment is long enough for the right opportunist to swipe your valuable item or items.

After hearing about these experiences, I’ve become more cautious about traveling with my laptop and flash drives. I think that sometimes we fail to remember how much personal information is stored on our flash drives, especially. We usually think about how much is on our laptops that we could not do without, but our flash drives are often overlooked. I have not been very consistent with my flash drive backups. I think most people do not even back up their drives.

In light of the summer travel season, I thought it might be good to do a reminder list of travel do’s and don’ts. If possible, it is best to leave any items at home. If it is not possible to travel without these items, we should all follow a few cautious rules:

1. Before you depart, make sure you have made a backup of all important files. Also, remove any files that are not absolutely necessary for you to take with you. Make your laptop or other item easily identifiable by placing a large sticker or other marking on it.

2. Clear out the cache, history and any other items that could store your information. Make sure you have a strong password on your accounts, too.

3. Be extra vigilant at the transit or airport check-in and security stations. Retrieve your laptop as quickly as possible after you pass through a security check.

4. Store your laptop or other item close to you. If you are on an airplane, it is best not to put the item in the overhead bin.

5. If you need to leave your item in your hotel room, lock it in the in-room safe, if possible. Do not leave your item unattended if you are driving a rental car.

I hope you all have a safe summer travel season! Don’t be a target! Taking a few precautions ahead of time and during your travel can save you big headaches!

As I have passed many schools lately, I have seen the signs with dates listed for graduations and end of school release. I am amazed that another year has passed so quickly. I have a high school reunion coming up soon that reminds me how very long ago it was that I graduated.

I remember getting ready to go away to college. I had a full scholarship to go to a school out of state, so was preparing for my first time away from my family for an extended time period. I spent a great deal of time that summer getting everything ready for my dorm room, attending orientation for the honors college and getting my schedule selected.

Throughout that process of getting myself “prepared” for college, I really thought I was ready. In those days, I had used the computer and had done some programming so thought I knew everything I needed. Back in those days we still took notes on paper and used actual books.

I think about how the class of 2010 students must be so extremely proficient with all kinds of technology tools to be “prepared” for college. To really succeed, they must be able to use all of the Office suite programs and photo/video software, too. If a graduate today is not ready for that side of college, too, then they will be at a disadvantage from day one.

To me, it seems like a great gift for a graduate to have a customized training session (3 or 6 hour) to make sure he or she has the tools to succeed. We spend so much time getting everything ready but sometimes neglect the important technology skills. So, if you know a graduate, think about investing in them to help them succeed in college and in the working world!!

Over the past few weeks, I think I have been living at my computer for way too many hours each day.  This has caused me to develop kinks, knots and pains where I usually don’t have them.  Have you experienced carpal tunnel issues or pain from hunching over the computer keyboard?

I think my knots and shoulder/back discomforts have been building over time.  I have not been willing to do anything about it though, until it got bad enough that it affected my work and productivity.  I’m now paying more money to restore myself back to my previous health than I would have paid in preventative time and money. I’m really kicking myself for letting it go so long.  There is a saying that talks about how people spend their health trying to get wealth and then gladly spend all of their wealth trying to get back their health. What I needed to do all along was to just take more breaks to get up and get moving.

I think that many of us do that with our skills on the job. We allow the technology to pass us by without seeking training or taking time to learn the new software skills until it starts to affect our work or productivity.  We make sure that we get the job done, even if we have to do it the long way because we don’t know the software well enough to work efficiently. We pay in terms of late nights and frustration, when all we needed to do was to take a few breaks to get some training and learn the technology.

If a corporation is allowing their employees to work like this, they are doing them a disservice. How much better and happier would employees be if they had updated technology skills to get their jobs done faster?  Wouldn’t it be great if customers were served more efficiently and clients had their needs met with fewer technology barriers?

I know it is hard to think about how you can take a break to get training, but if you think about the long-term, it is well worth it! Get up and get moving into new technology skills!