Dry January for Your Business: 6 Tech Habits to Quit Cold Turkey

Right now, millions are embracing Dry January, choosing to skip alcohol for better health and productivity.

Your business has its own version of Dry January—it's a list of risky tech habits holding you back.

We all recognize these habits as inefficient or dangerous, yet we cling to them because "it's manageable" and "we're too busy."

Until suddenly, it's not.

Here are six harmful tech routines to stop immediately—and how to replace them with smarter practices.

Habit #1: Postponing Software Updates

Hitting "Remind Me Later" on updates has compromised more small businesses than cyberattacks itself.

While inconvenient to reboot mid-day, updates don't just add features—they seal vulnerabilities hackers exploit.

Delaying updates from days to months leaves your software exposed, giving criminals the keys to your systems.

The devastating WannaCry ransomware attack exploited a flaw patched months earlier, affecting 150 countries and costing billions.

Solution: Schedule updates for the end of the day or let your IT team install them quietly in the background—no interruptions, no security gaps.

Habit #2: Reusing One Password Across All Platforms

You've got that go-to password—meets length and complexity, easy to remember—used on everything from email to online shopping.

But data breaches happen frequently, leaking your credentials onto hacker marketplaces.

Hackers don't guess your passwords; they reuse leaked combos to access your critical accounts, a tactic called credential stuffing.

Solution: Use a password manager like LastPass, 1Password, or Bitwarden. Remember one strong master password; they create secure, unique passwords for every login. Setup takes minutes, peace of mind lasts forever.

Habit #3: Sharing Passwords via Email or Text

Instant fixes like sending passwords in Slack, email, or SMS seem convenient but leave permanent, searchable records.

If an email account is compromised, attackers can harvest every shared credential in seconds—a digital equivalent of mailing your house keys.

Solution: Use password managers' secure sharing features to give access without exposing actual passwords. If manual sharing is unavoidable, split credentials across channels and update passwords immediately afterward.

Habit #4: Granting Everyone Admin Rights for Convenience

Making every user an admin to speed things up creates danger. Admins can install software, disable protections, or delete critical data.

If their credentials are stolen, attackers gain powerful control, multiplying damages quickly—ransomware thrives on such broad access.

Solution: Apply the principle of least privilege: assign users only the permissions they need. Spending a few extra minutes setting this up avoids costly breaches down the line.

Habit #5: Letting "Temporary" Workarounds Become the Norm

Quick fixes that linger too long drain productivity and pose risks.

These workarounds rely on fragile setups or specific people's knowledge and collapse when updates occur—often without a clear fix in sight.

Solution: Compile a list of these band-aid fixes. Don't try to handle all fixes yourself—let experts analyze and permanently resolve them to boost efficiency and reduce frustration.

Habit #6: Relying on a Complex Spreadsheet to Run Your Business

That giant multitab spreadsheet with complex formulas only a few understand is a ticking time bomb.

If lost or corrupted, you risk data loss without easy recovery. It lacks proper backups, audit trails, and scalability.

Solution: Document what these spreadsheets do and migrate their functions to dedicated tools like CRM, inventory, or scheduling software. These platforms include backups, permissions, and audit features to safeguard your business.

Why Breaking These Habits Is So Challenging

You're not uninformed—you're just stretched thin.

• Consequences of bad habits stay hidden until disaster strikes dramatically.
• Proper security measures seem time-consuming compared to familiar shortcuts.
• When bad tech habits become the norm company-wide, risks feel less real.

Much like Dry January reveals hidden dependency, awareness is key to dropping these silent business risks.

How to Break These Habits for Good Without Struggling Alone

Willpower alone doesn't fix tech habits—ecosystem changes do.

Successful businesses reshape their environments so secure and efficient choices are effortless:

• Deploy password managers organization-wide to prevent unsafe sharing.
• Automate updates to eliminate "remind me later" temptations.
• Centralize permission controls to avoid careless admin access.
• Replace workarounds with reliable processes managed by experts.
• Migrate critical data from spreadsheets to professional systems with oversight.

When the right choice is the easy choice, improved habits become the default.

Ready to Eliminate Risky Tech Habits Dragging Your Business Down?

Schedule a Bad Habit Audit today.

In just 15 minutes, we'll uncover your unique challenges and map out a clear path to lasting improvements.

No pressure, no tech jargon—just a strategy for a safer, more efficient, and more profitable 2026.

Click here or give us a call at (949) 396-1100 to book your 15-Minute Discovery Call.

Break free from harmful habits today—because January is the perfect time for change.