Your IT Budget Is a Dumpster Fire (And You Know It)

It's Monday morning. You're looking at your AWS bill, and—here we go again—your cloud costs just tripled. You have absolutely no idea why, because the last time you thought about that account was when you approved it in 2022 and promptly forgot it existed.

Your competitor down the street? They just automated their entire client onboarding process. They're spending 30% less on technology than you are, and their team isn't held together with Windows 98.

What's the difference?

They have an actual IT budget. You have feelings.

Let's Talk About What's Happening Right Now

That software subscription you barely remember signing up for? The one from the trade show two years ago? It just auto-renewed at enterprise pricing. Surprise!

Those laptops from 2018 that "still work fine"? They're bleeding productivity every single day. Your team is spending 10 hours a week on workarounds for problems that shouldn't exist. But hey, at least you saved money on the hardware refresh, right?

And the cybersecurity thing you've been putting off because "we're too small to be a target"? HAHAHA, sorry just had to laugh. 😂

Here's what drives me insane: Everyone knows this is happening. You know it's happening. Your IT person (if you have one) has been begging you to care about it. But IT budgeting sounds overwhelming, so it gets pushed to next quarter. And next quarter. And next quarter.

The Way This Actually Works

Smart companies split their IT spending into two buckets:

Baseline costs: The stuff that keeps the lights on. Software renewals, managed services, the boring-but-necessary maintenance that prevents everything from catching fire.

Strategic projects: The investments that actually grow your business. New CRM systems, automation tools, cybersecurity upgrades that matter.

Most companies spend 100% of their mental energy on baseline costs, trying to squeeze vendors for discounts, questioning every subscription, while completely ignoring the strategic side. Then they wonder why their competitors are eating their lunch.

It's like obsessing over whether to buy regular or premium gas while your engine is falling apart.

Here's What Winners Are Doing

Companies that are winning… They're not spending more money. They're just not stupid about where it goes.

• They allocate 10-15% of their IT budget to cybersecurity before a breach costs them six figures and their reputation.

• They review spending quarterly instead of waiting for something to explode.

• They actually ask "What business outcome does this deliver?" before buying the shiny thing.

And they don't treat their IT budget like a necessary evil. They treat it like what it actually is: the roadmap for staying competitive.

What You Should Do (Right Now)

Three things, and I'm being dead serious here:

1. Inventory what you have. Yes, all of it. Software, hardware, subscriptions you forgot about, everything. You can't budget for what you can't see.

2. Align spending with your actual business priorities. What are your top three goals? Now look at your IT spending. Does it support those goals, or are you just funding digital entropy?

3. Set aside 10-15% for surprises. Things break. Opportunities emerge. The market shifts. Having contingency budget isn't pessimism.

I’ve got a present for you. Click below to download the SMB IT Budgeting Guide.

Your IT budget isn't an IT problem. It's a competitive-advantage problem. And right now, most SMBs are losing.

Until next week,

—Jared 

Text Me: 314.806.3912

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