5 Ways to Green Your Office for a Black Bottom Line

“Going green” is all the rage these days as people realize that their individual actions can combine for eco-friendly results. If you’ve worked at a big company, you probably noticed some green policies like recycling and power conservation.

But when you become President, CEO, Admin and Chief Bottle Washer of your own small business, it can be easy to forget to implement sustainable policies of your own. Luckily, with just a few small changes in your habits you can add “Corporate Sustainability Czar” to your long list of job titles.

1. Print with Deliberation – Do you remember the old saying “measure twice, cut once”? Well, in this day and age the adage goes more like “Proofread twice, print once.” If you do print out some unneeded documents, chuck them in a scrap paper box for the next time you need to print out internal documents.
2. Digitize your Documents – With nearly everyone in business using email, there’s no excuse for mailing documents (which waste printed stamps and pollute by causing mail delivery plans, trains and trucks to emit carbon dioxide) when a simple email will do. Invest in a scanner and digitize documents whenever possible to avoid the waste of mailing and faxing. If your clients still fax, electronic faxing services such as MyFax, eFax and Ring Central let you digitize at least your half of the fax transaction. And digital signatures, such as those offered by DocuSign allow you to even sign contracts and other important papers without ever touching a pen.
3. Install Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs) – These light bulbs last longer than regular light bulbs and use less energy to boot. Just remember that these should be recycled instead of thrown away, because they contain mercury. Which brings us to:
4. Implement a Recycling Program – The hardest part of any recycling program is getting started. But if you take just a couple of hours out of one day to find recycling centers in your area and gather the bins and boxes you need to recycle various materials, you will be glad you did. Some office buildings or municipalities offer special services such as curbside recycling, so inquire with your city or your building about their green services.
5. Check your Computer’s Energy Save Settings – Most modern computers come with a way to change energy settings. Tinkering with these settings will allow you to program your computer to hibernate after a period of inactivity, turn off your computer’s unnecessary functions, and even operate in a stripped down mode that uses less power while you are working.

By no means are these the only ways to green your home or small business office. You can also green your work habits by biking or taking public transit to work and even green your snacking habits by munching on locally produced fruits and veggies picked up from a farmer’s market. How do you keep your small business green and eco-friendly?

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