Jordan and her Terrible, Horrible, Not-So-Bad, Very Bad Day

What Happened

Losing your computer is one of those things you tell yourself will never happen, until it does. And when it does, it feels like the world stops spinning. Or is that just me?

I found quickly, corporate life brings routine. Wake up at the same time, get ready in a set number of minutes, eat breakfast before a certain hour, leave by X o’clock, and arrive punctually. I had mastered this rhythm. But after the holidays, that rhythm was shaken. I’d been out of office, traveling, visiting family, celebrating, and truthfully, work was the last thing on my mind.

Then came Monday morning, my first day back. I woke up at 7AM, was dressed and ready by 7:15, and began gathering everything for the day when it hit me: Where’s my work backpack?

Panic set in. My backpack was nowhere in sight. Not in its usual spot. Not in my apartment. Not in my car. I tore through my space like a tornado, checked every corner twice, and when hope started slipping, I did the best thing I could, I called my dad. Fear. Tears. A lot of “Jordan, take a deep breath, we’ll figure it out.” But the reality sank in: I had lost my work computer.

It wasn’t just the laptop. It was the weight of what that meant. Company asset, missing. Sensitive data, potentially at risk. My mind spiraled: I’ve disappointed myself. I’ve created a problem for my team. Will my boss lose trust in me? What if my coworkers think I’m careless? Every worst-case scenario flooded in.

By 7:20 AM, I knew I had to bite the bullet and call my boss. Tears welling, voice shaking, I dreaded hearing disappointment on the other end as I dropped the bad news. However,  Mary’s calm response was a lifeline: “It happens. Take your time this morning. Keep looking around and come in at 8:30. Take a deep breath, it’ll all be okay.”

Her humanity and poise made the worst morning of my life just a little bit better. Still, the panic didn’t vanish. Where was my backpack?

I searched again. My apartment, three more times. My car, three more times. My roommates heard my sobs and selflessly joined the hunt. However, we came up with nothing. And by 8:15, I knew I had to face reality and walk into Blackink IT without my laptop.

Standing in the elevator, my stomach was spiraling. Embarrassment. Humiliation. Fear of judgment. And as I stepped through the doors with my head hung low, queue the embarrassing waterworks. Yes, I cried at work. I felt like I had let down the entire company.

But then something happened. My team didn’t judge me; they acted. Calm, professional, swift, and caring. They remotely locked down my computer, secured our data, and set me up with a spare so I could keep working. They asked me the right questions to ensure proactiveness to determine the severity of my mistake and take the next best steps. What felt like the end of the world to me seemed like only a bump in the road to them. Within some time, I was back to business.

The Lesson

You’re probably wondering where my backpack was. It wasn’t stolen from my car. It wasn’t left at a gas station. It wasn’t hidden in Narnia. Luckily, it was sitting safely at home, in Chicago.

What I want you to take away from this story is to know that situations like this happen. While they’re absolutely terrifying, embarrassing, and humbling, they’re also a reminder of why transparency matters. If you lose a company asset, hiding it only makes things worse. Be honest and speak up because your team can’t protect the company, or you, if they don’t know what’s happening. And most importantly, understand your device and its access. If my laptop had actually been stolen, the consequences could’ve been far more serious, but I would’ve been able to let my team know what access I had and was ready for anything they would’ve needed.

While I hope this never happens to you, let’s be real, life is always unexpected. The best time to figure out what to do when you lose a company asset is before the worst day of your life, not during it. Do you know your company’s process for a lost laptop or device? What steps should you take? If you’re not sure, now’s the time to ask. I would recommend starting with your supervisor(s) or technical team(s) and get familiar with the plan. A few good questions to bring up:

     1. Who is my first call when I realize my device is lost or stolen (for example,      employee manager, IT helpdesk, IT security team...)?

     2. What is the company procedure for securing my business accounts (reset      passwords for logins to computer, remote access, and web applications)?

     3. Is my company able to secure access to and remotely wipe lost or stolen      devices?

     4. Is my company able to quickly identify what, if any, sensitive data is stored on the      computer or that the user had access to?

     5. If there were “sensitive” data on the device, does my company have any      regulatory, statutory or contractual obligations to report the incident?

Trust me, being prepared will save you from panic mode. When the unexpected happens, you’ll feel ready instead of spiraling like I did.

As for me, I’ve finally calmed down and taken a deep breath. However, I’ll be adding an AirTag to my backpack and becoming a full-on helicopter parent, needing to know its whereabouts at all times. But, I DO NOT recommend losing your backpack altogether, it'll save you a lot of tears and stress…