When you are first considering going green, there is a lot to start thinking about, but its important to not get overwhelmed.  Just remember the end goal is to make your company green, so start small, and work your way up from there.  I remember a few lessons i learned back in grade school about how to change our impact on the environment, and you will find that even these childhood lessons are helpful when trying to make a change.  I will list off my childhood lessons, and how they can be changed and modified for todays business world!

1: When you leave a room, turn off the light bulb.
This may seem easy, but even this simple task can help your company to start down the green pathway.  Turning off the light in a room when it is not being used can save your company in the long run.  In addition you can replace all light bulbs in your office with new Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs.  An average CFL will consume 75% less energy and last up to 10 times longer!

2: When using a faucet, make sure to turn it off in between uses.
At the office we often dont use water faucets for extended periods of time, but this is another huge area we can imporove on.  Make sure that when a faucet is turned off, it is completely off and not leaking.  Make sure to fix any leaking faucets as well as a leaking faucet can account for a ton of water loss.

3: When using heating and air conditioning make sure to keep doors and windows closed.
In the classroom this is often an easier task than at the office, but in both places the lesson is equaly as valuable.  In the office you have many people walking around and making their own decisions.  If someone changes the thermostat, everyone else may or may not know about it.  This may be a difficult problem to tackle, but if everyone in the office pitches in, each person can help everyone else stay on task.

These three lessons may seem simple and easy, but they are a great start for any business who wants to make the switch to green.  There is no reason to buy fancy solor power, or any other renuable power, if you cant use it efficiently.  businesslink.gov.uk posted an article recently with the top ten ways to save money by using resources efficiently.  If you can handle these three i would recomend checking out the complete list here.

(Photo Credit: ian.schofield from Flickr under Creative Commons)

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