When I was in the 6th grade, our history teacher Mr. Dougherty used to stress the importance of being prepared–for pop quizzes, research papers, or whatever else may have come along. He reasoned, "Prior planning prevents a poor performance."

As 12 year-olds, we thought it was corny and put it in the back of our minds.

As cliched as Mr. Dougherty's phrase may have been, it's entirely true, and I had a chance to put it to the test earlier this week. I was giving a speech at a conference when suddenly, the system that powered my microphone and slides completely gave out.