I just couldn’t go past LastPass for this first instalment of tech tool reviews which will be rolled out every 4 weeks or so. And show how it can literally save you thousands of dollars in productivity time.
Why LastPass?
First just a bit of background. I’d had friends and clients recommend and talk about using LastPass for years but said, “yeah, thanks but no thanks”. No need when passwords are securely stored inside the most powerful place ever…my brain.
I’m security conscious when it comes to online activities. I’m quite vigilant, and have complicated passwords. I didn’t save them in the browsers (therefore I needed to enter user/password details every time I entered a site) I also had multiple passwords for multiple different types of accounts I needed them for.
But the reality was that I was using more and more sites that required a log-in and I was starting to use that good old “lost your password” button more and more often. This was when it hit me that enough was enough.
What has been the impact since I started with LastPass:
The realisation that I’m an idiot! That is the impact it’s had…I can’t believe I didn’t set this up years ago. I’ve been wasting sooooo much time entering my long passwords or having to go through many a cumbersome process to regain access to sites to get done what I needed to get done.
A small amount of setup time pales into insignificance when it comes to the time saved. Plus the more secure passwords I am now using in every site that I access.
Sure there’s a small part of me that wonders about the fact that all my passwords are in one place. And that if these were compromised then someone could get access to some pretty important stuff. But I also think we need to put our trust somewhere and play the cost/benefit weigh up. And for me, I’m comfortable in the belief that LastPass have plenty at stake should their systems be compromised. And so I have faith they will continue to have that as their number one priority, or they won’t have a business. A pretty strong motivator to stay in front of the game.
So what does it mean in dollar terms?
Running a few numbers to see how much time and, ultimately expense, has been saved as a result of moving to LastPass, it becomes a little jaw dropping…
- Access approx. 10 systems a day where password required (minimum)
- Say that used to take 5 minutes per day (remember password, type in, get into site)
- 2 lost passwords per week
- A further 10 minutes for that
- Therefore approx. 35 minutes per week
- Put that in dollar terms, and it rounds out at approx. $5,000 p.a. saved in productivity time
What you can do?
I was speaking to a fellow business owner at a networking event a couple of weeks ago. She reasoned remembering all the different passwords of each account was her form of brain training. A valid point indeed if you do manage to remember them all. Although I did suggest that the productive time saved from those inevitable “forgot my password” moments would far outweigh the brain training benefits. Especially given she is doing a stack of brain training anyway with the awesome activities and innovation that happens daily in her business.
If you aren’t already using a password manager of any kind I strongly suggest you consider doing so. If you have security concerns around this, I totally understand. Look at all the various providers out there and find one that makes you comfortable.
And if you would like to get other great productivity tips and ideas the free ‘3 Proven Strategies to make each and every day more productive than ever’ from our home page.
And finally, connect with Mints CD Consulting on our social media channels to follow more ideas to make your business more profitable than it ever has been.
