Lost my wallet? I nearly lost my sanity!

Have you ever lost your wallet? Well, this morning, I can happily tell you from experience it falls into the category of a "ridiculously inconvenient". No, really, it is a complete pain in the backside. Not only have I got to organise the obligatory cancelling of all my cards and re-ordering my driving licence, but it's the little things that you normally do without a thought that are now off limits, such as buying food. I have an "Internet-only account", so I can't just pop into the branch to get my money.

This means things that were so basic, like filling up my car, are now hurdles to get over. For example, I was in my car on my way home yesterday, when the little orange light in my car started waving at me. Normally, I would just take a couple of seconds to remember which filling stations are on my way, and I would pull in. Instead, I had the most tense journey home, with every gadget in my car (of which there are thousands) switched off, and even promising my car a sponge-bath if it made it home. What will I do if it conks out? Who am I going to call? Wait-a-minute... I can't call anyone as I can't top my phone up, because I haven't got my wallet! Oh 'eck! Happily, it pulled into my drive, but it was the most nerve racking journey I have ever had!

As I've never been in this position before, I have not taken the time to make a back-up plan. I don't have a stash of £50 odd at home for just such occasions, and I can't use the overdraft from the Bank-of-Girlfriend too much without feeling like I'm a miser (although the interest rate of one complimentary cup of tea in the morning could be worse). I appear to have dug myself into a hole here, folks! However, before you all go "tsk, what a wally", have you got a back-up plan? Not just for occasions where your wallet beats you at hide-&-seek, but for anything? What about your car/house keys disappearing down a drain? Have you got a spare set at a friend or relatives house? What about if your electric goes phut? Be honest with yourself, have you really got a back-up plan?

More importantly, what about your business back-up plan? I can remember being at a networking meeting when everyone was asked whether they had a Business Continuity Plan, and out of about twenty people, only one person said they had. He was a Lawyer, you'll be unsurprised to hear, but that begs the question... have you got a back-up plan for your work? If your computer systems go down, have you backed everything up? What if key members of staff can no longer work, can you take up the slack without affecting business? Honestly? I know companies who have gone out of business totally, simply because one seemingly tiny thing going wrong has snowballed into a massive and irreparable problem, simply because nobody had a plan to cover it beforehand.

So please, people, take a few moments to identify the parts of your business that would become a real headache if something happened. Then, figure out how to cover it. That way, not only can you rest assured that you are not going to be caught short like I did, but if someone asks you if you have a contingency plan, you can smugly say "yes I have".

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