A New Year for you means resolutions you’d like to implement to your own life, so why not make a New Year resolution for your business as well? Small business owners who work at home as well as brick-and-mortar businesses can both benefit from these suggestions for making businesses a little greener.
1. Completely power down your computers/equipment (this means unplugging them too!)
You may be used to getting started directly in the morning and having to only wake your computer up from “sleep mode.” Not completely powering down your equipment when you’re finished for the day can stack up to a lot of wasted power. So instead of going to your computer last, head there first to start it up, then go about grabbing your morning cup of coffee.
2. Don’t print emails (or watch what you’re printing.)
If you have a Smartphone with a great data plan, you won’t need to worry about this because you can access your emails wherever you are, or even take screenshots of the important information to check back later. If you do feel it’s necessary to print, make sure on the “Print Preview” screen that you’re only printing what you need. Many emails tend to print out with spare pages that only have one or two items on them, which is completely unnecessary.
3. Choose suppliers who return packaging to be recycled or reused.
Whether you send out products from your home or the office, you should always check with suppliers about their return policies on packaging. This way you know the extra cardboard boxes and Styrofoam peanuts will be reused properly.
4. Carpool and transit whenever possible.
This notion has been around for ages, and public transportation is much better than it used to be. If you work from home but know you need to head into the city for a meeting or to pick up a package, check out your transportation options before joining the thousands of others on the highways. If you work in an office and know a few people who live in your area, set up a carpool! You’ll get to know your coworkers, and do the planet a favour.
All of these suggestions are just slight changes to your every day activity, but they become beneficial in the long run. It’s time to start the New Year off for you and your business in the best way possible.
© Zoe Begopoulos, DemGen Inc. 2014
