Ah, February. Love is in the air. People are buying chocolate, booking fancy dinners, and pretending they like romantic comedies. So let’s talk about relationships — tech ones.
Ever had an IT experience that felt like a bad date? Like you call for help and hear... nothing. Or they “fix” something, but it breaks again the next day. Fun, right?
If you’ve been there, you know it’s draining. If you haven’t? Lucky you. Most small business owners aren’t so fortunate.
A lot of folks are stuck in what we’ll call: The Bad Tech Relationship.
They keep hoping it’ll get better.
They make excuses.
They say, “Well, at least it’s cheap,” as if that makes up for the chaos.
They keep calling... even though they’ve stopped trusting the person on the other end.
And just like a bad date, it didn’t start out this way.
At first, everything was great. The IT person was responsive. Friendly. Quick. They fixed a few things, set everything up, and you thought, “Nice! We’re all set.”
But then your business grew. Your tech got more complicated. Threats got sneakier. Your team got busier.
And suddenly, the IT magic vanished.
Now problems keep coming back. Replies take forever. And you hear the dreaded: “We’ll get to it when we can.”
So what do you do? Like anyone in a rocky relationship — you adapt. You plan your business around someone else’s bad behavior.
That’s not partnership. That’s survival mode.
You call. You leave a message. Maybe you send an email. Then... nothing.
Meanwhile, your employee can’t work, the team’s stuck, deadlines slide, and customers are tapping their feet.
You’re paying people who literally can’t do their jobs — all because IT vanished like a ghosted Tinder date.
That’s not support. That’s “I said I’d be there” and never showed up.
A good tech partner? They answer fast, fix faster, and ideally stop problems before they even start.
This one’s a gem.
The IT person finally shows up, fixes the issue, and acts like they just performed brain surgery.
You get vibes like:
It’s like dating someone who causes drama and then blames you for being upset.
A real IT partner doesn’t make you feel dumb. They make you feel like, “Thank goodness someone’s got my back.”
Because tech isn’t supposed to be emotional. It’s supposed to be boring and reliable.
This is when things go from bad to “Houston, we have a problem.”
Your team stops calling for help. Why? Because they’ve given up.
They start fixing things their own way. Sending files over email. Saving stuff to their desktop. Sharing passwords in text messages. Buying random apps just to keep moving.
Not because they want to break rules. Because they want to get stuff done without waiting two days for IT to show up.
You see it in weird little habits — like everyone avoiding Wi-Fi meetings at 3 PM because the signal always dies then. That’s not normal. That’s just everyone tiptoeing around broken tech.
And those workarounds? They’re like booby traps. They open doors for hackers, cause compliance nightmares, and create chaos when someone leaves the company.
Workarounds are what people do when they’ve stopped believing help is coming.
Most bad tech relationships fall apart for the same reason real ones do: nobody’s keeping up with the maintenance.
IT is often reactive. Something breaks. You call. They fix it. Then nothing… until the next fire.
That’s like only talking to your partner during arguments. Technically communication, sure — but not exactly healthy.
Meanwhile, your business is growing. More staff. More data. More apps. More stress.
So the setup that worked when you had five people and a dream? Yeah, it doesn’t cut it with 15 remote workers and cyberattacks knocking on your door.
Good IT isn’t just about putting out fires. It’s about preventing them. They patch, update, monitor — all quietly in the background — so you can focus on running your business, not rebooting the printer every hour.
Good IT is kind of... boring. In the best way.
Your systems run smoothly during crunch time. Your team doesn’t dread updates. Files are easy to find. Support answers fast. Security is locked down. Your apps play nice together. Growth doesn’t break everything.
Here’s how you really know you’re in a good tech relationship: most days, you don’t even think about IT.
Because it just works. No drama. No magic. Just calm.
If your IT provider was a person you were dating... would you still be seeing them?
Or would your friends stage an intervention and say, “Really? You’re still calling that guy?”
If you’re stuck in a bad tech relationship, you’re paying twice: once with money, and again with stress.
And neither is worth it.
Already in a good spot? Fantastic! But chances are, you know someone who isn’t.
If this post sounds like your business, let’s chat. Book a quick 10-minute discovery call and we’ll show you how to fix the mess without the breakup tears.
If it doesn’t sound like you, high five. But you probably know someone it does. Forward this along — we’ll help them out.
Book your 10-minute discovery call here