Filed under: lifehacking, Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: advertising, conservation, cost benefit, cost to consumer, decluttering, effectiveness, environmental, flyer, GTD, improvement, incremental improvement, learning, lifehacking, money, newspaper, recycling, save money, social responsibility, sustainable living, tips, waste
I don’t like clutter. I know advertising works (which explains the billions spent on it) the question is… Why would I subject myself to advertising and allow my house to be cluttered just to give someone else my money?
Four times a week we receive a community newspaper. Now the paper is mostly ads, advertisements, paid advertising and ads. There are relevant local articles, but it hardly seems worth the “filtering” to get to the content. Out of 40 printed pages, I’d guess 4 or less actually contain news. Now I don’t believe in mindlessly reading advertisements (and don’t know anyone who will admit to this), but I must admit my relationship to the printed newspapers that appear on my mailbox has been undergoing a transformation.
I was curious what the impact was on my time and on the environment to handle all the paper associated with the unsolicited flyers and community newspapers I receive. To try and estimate the impact on my city, I’m assuming everyone in town does exactly what I do, and I’m believing the newspaper’s circulation figures (averaged to 40,000 per paper) which I found on the Internet. You will see some high dollar figures here, and this is because the cost to consumers is generally left out of the equation and ignored… Retailers don’t incur that cost, it is the consumer’s problem, so why would anyone bother to track or estimate that cost… This is only a rough but fair estimate. Now I’d love to make this more accurate, so if you take issue with the numbers, do us all a favour and contribute some research. Here is the transformation in chronological order:
Handling Flyers and community newspapers (original version 1.0)
Initially we would bring the paper in, sort through the flyers “in case there was something good there”, and put the papers on the coffee table to be read. Then I would flip from front to back through the paper making sure I didn’t “miss anything. So including all the “handling time” bringing in the paper, reading through it. Picking it up off the floor after the small children decorated the room with it. Recycling it. I probably spent 30 minutes per paper and ended up skipping half of the papers completely. The time spent “reading the paper” was time I didn’t spend with my kids etc, so I’m going to think of that cost to me as $20/hour for my like many people earn. The 150 grams estimated weight of the paper is based on Canada Post’s “weight restriction” for mailing community newspapers (mine is probably larger) and 37 grams of flyers. So 150 grams 4 times a week is 0.6 Kg per week or 31.2 Kg per year.
- My yearly time spent “handling” newspapers and flyers: 52 hours $1040
- My papers and flyers sent to recycling: 31.2Kgs (68.8 lbs)
- My city’s yearly time spent “handling” newspapers and flyers: 2,080,000 hours $41,600,000 (this is the cost of consumer’s time!)
- My city’s papers and flyers sent to recycling: 1,248,000 Kgs (2,751,369 lbs)
Handling Flyers and community newspapers (updated version 2.0)
Then I recognized the time I was spending “tidying up” these papers all over our living space and I wanted to get the papers re-routed to recycling at the earliest point possible. What I would do is “intentionaly” sit down and skim the newspaper articles for 5 minutes, if there was relevant content I save the paper for my wife and tell her what is worth reading, if not, I recycle it and all of the flyers stuffed inside before the paper even makes it up the stairs to our living space. (Sorry advertisers, your advertising budget was not effectively spent). But this skimming is still an interesting activity to me, I’m not doing it because I am (at that moment) interested in reading the paper or learning something specific, I’m “reacting” to the newspaper being delivered to my door. I’m voluntarily spending at least 20 minutes per week filtering out advertisements…. Hmm, how is it that someone else is “making me” spend time reading their paper…. That wasn’t my idea. Hey I could have used that time for something I WANTED to do.
- My yearly time spent “handling” newspapers and flyers: 17 hours $340 <reduced>
- My papers and flyers sent to recycling: 31.2Kgs (68.8 lbs) <No change>
- My city’s yearly time spent “handling” newspapers and flyers: 680,000 hours $13,600,000 <reduced>
- My city’s papers and flyers sent to recycling: 1,248,000 Kgs (2,751,369 lbs) <No change>
Handling Flyers and community newspapers (New Era version 3.0)
So I noticed that when those friendly guys from the “Globe and Mail” would call, I would answer. “Not really interested, I use the Internet.” and they would simply drop it and let me go with no more “sales”… hmmm.. Maybe I could just use the Internet and replace my local community paper… So I testsed this. What I could find online (in several locations) had all the information with much less advertising. In many cases it offered more than the news (videos and such). I bravely asked my wife what she thought and when I learned that she really didn’t use those grocery store flyers I’d been saving for years, our course was set. We put a “No Flyers or Newspapers” sign on our mailbox and suddenly our house is neater, our recycling is lighter, and I’m facing much less temptation to purchase things I would not have otherwise purchased. I’m estimating that I only spend 15 minutes per month looking for local news and information. Only God knows the value of the “impulse purchases” I’m not making.
- My yearly time spent not “handling” newspapers and flyers: 3 hours $60 (Internet time) <reduced>
- My papers and flyers sent to recycling: 0 Kgs (0 lbs) <reduced>
- My city’s residents potential yearly time spent not “handling” newspapers and flyers: 120,000 hours $2,400,000 <reduced>
- My city’s could potentially save 1,248,000 Kgs (2,751,369 lbs) of paper from going to recycling (or worse) <Join Me! It’s free!>
Adding back “The Internet”
Sure there is time spent on the Internet to find local information, but I don’t think it is the same as putting a paper on your doorstep. I think that when someone is actually pursuing information, and not just having it “forced” on them, they are able to dig deeper and learn more. Sure I will likely look up some local events using the Internet, maybe 15 minutes per month when I NEED to know something specific. But that is one of the major points I’m making. Newspaper delivery was someone else’s idea that consumed my time and wasted paper.
Other Resources for breaking your flyer addiction
- I liked the vision expressed by http://www.reddotcampaign.ca
We are fortunate to live in abundance where one of our major issues is TOO MUCH STUFF! And to keep us buying more, Canadians are inundated with $19 Billion worth of advertising each year. If the old adage is true, “half of all marketing works great, if only we knew which half” why don’t advertisers spend more resources understanding which half works and spend the other half supporting community?
- Another small but useful site is: http://www.iwilltry.org/w/index.php?title=Flyers_against_flyers_campaign which advocates convincing your neighbours to join you in giving up flyers. They had some great images you could print out and tape to your mailbox (download the originals from their site).
- The Canadian national “Do Not Call List” operated by the government of Canada promises to reduce phone based solicitation. https://www.lnnte-dncl.gc.ca/
- The “Canadian Marketing Association has a “Do not Contact Service” designed to get your name on a list their members might check before sending out mailed advertisements. http://www.the-cma.org/?WCE=C=47|K=224217
- A ?grassroots? attempt to produce a better “do not call list” http://www.ioptout.ca/ trys to overcome limitations with the “Do Not Call List” (charities are not restricted etc).
(Use the comments to evaluate the usefulness of these links).
Please comment to let me know what you think of all this. Do you have paper taming tricks? ways to find local information that work for you? Would you consider joining me with a simple “no flyers or newspapers” sign on your mailbox? Why or why not?
Cheers,
Greg
Filed under: Quality, Excellence & Design | Tags: clearance, freeway, government, improvement, incremental improvement, overheight detection, overpass, planning, prevention, quality, safety, social responsibility, traffic
This was a blog post that was going to start out as criticism, but as time has progressed, the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation has addressed the problem admirably and taken the wind out of those critical sails, so you will get to hear the story of what they did to improve the quality of one of BC’s freeway overpasses to prevent accidents and protect infrastructure.
The story
In the 1960s, the overpasses above Highway 1 were built to similar design and varying clearance. Perhaps in those days it was inconceivable that trucks would stretch 4.4 Meters (almost 15 feet) into the air, or perhaps years of additional paving shaved inches off of that clearance. Whatever the case, we find clearance signs with various “heights” recorded on most of the overpasses East of Vancouver 4.6 Meters being the most common I’ve observed.
Overpass Clearance (one of many)
Overpass clearance - 2
Overpass clearance - 3
Year before last, some surprised trucker plowed into the Glover Road freeway overpass Eastbound on Highway 1 in Langley. That particular overpass was a little lower than some of the others, so conceivably he might have driven quite some way before having his big rig stopped (the hard way). The damage to the overpass was significant enough that traffic on Glover Road was reduced to 1 way alternating traffic for the several months it took for repairs.
I’m sure someone in the Ministry of Transportation thought “Wow, that was shocking, that guy’s truck just hit the overpass. Hope that doesn’t happen again…”
Last year, another surprised trucker plowed into the same Glover Road overpass. Same damage, same road closure with alternating traffic. The repairs made one side of the overpass solid, presumably to lend additional strength to the bridge (under siege). Since that second repair, there have been additional precautions taken, which together have formed a system to try and prevent this from happening again.
Overpass under siege (repaired again)
Preventing the collisions
First there were 2 signs positioned further up the road on either side which re-stated the clearance information printed on the bridge. With advance warning a trucker could conceivably stop before hitting the bridge. The signs used bright contrasting colours to draw attention.
Bright clearance signs (with enough room to stop)
Next, a bunch of yellow and black reflective signs were added to the bridge to draw attention to the bridge.
So if a trucker was overheight, knew he was overheight, read the signs, did the math and stopped in time he could avoid hitting the bridge. But what if he didn’t know he was overheight?
A series of bright yellow warning / informational signs were deployed, starting with a sign warning trucks to use the right lane for the overheight detection system.
Truckers Keep Right for overheight detection system
Then the overheight detection system which triggers a flashing overhead sign that would warn when a truck was overheight.
Glover Road Overheight detection system uses beams (of light) when interupted, flashing signals are triggered.
When flashing give that overheight truck that isn't stopping lots of room
Then a small pull-out was built where trucks could pull off the freeway to check their loads. It had a large bright yellow “pull-out” sign for easy identification, and a series of bright yellow signs warning that the pullout was approaching. At the pullout there is an informational sign intended for those who have used the pull-out (my eyes are good, but at 100km/h that font is too small even for me 🙂 )
overheight truck pullout ahead
overheight truck pullout ahead (getting closer)
overheight truck pullout NOW! (no seriously, NOW)
So now overheight trucks can be detected and “flashed”, and there is an illuminated pullout available for these trucks. Assuming that works and the driver notices he is overheight, this challenge remains for a driver who is overheight. He either needs to back up the freeway for 2-3 miles, or he needs a crane to unload him so he can drive underneath the bridge.
Now the Ministry has added a “detour route” informational sign West of the 200th street interchange in the same bright yellow colour, warning drivers of overheight vehicles to detour off of the freeway.
Good job guys, hopefully we don’t see another accident at that freeway overpass like the last two.
The unmeasured cost
Glover road was reduced to single lane alternating traffic next to a university on the main road leading from Langley to the Albion ferry crossing (on the Fraser river). Thousands of people had to wait each day while traffic changed direction to cross the freeway. This took them away from their families, their jobs, their volunteer engagements. This time was simply lost. Add to that unmeasured cost, the construction costs and the real cost of not putting signage up after the first incident becomes more apparent. The albion ferry is reported to have moved about 4,500 people per day, so this number would be reasonable for forming an estimate. Assuming a 1 minute delay for 4500 cars per day for 180 days (2 years 3 months out of service each year), with commuters earning $25/hour, the inconvenience could have cost citizens. $337,500 over 2 years. That number will never appear in a government balance sheet, but it is a cost that was paid by citizens, and it is a cost we may be able to avoid paying in the future thanks to the improvements brought by the Ministry of Transportation.
Traffic congestion HWY 1 Eastbound
I find it ironic that the train bridge overpass to the East of Glover Road (bearing scars from previous impacts) is even lower… We’ll wait and see if that has been taken into account.
The "even lower" railway overpass to the East (notice the repairs from past collisions...)
Cheers,
Greg
Filed under: Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: british columbia, effectiveness, election, environmental, First Past The Post, government, green party, improvement, liberal, may 12th election, moral, NDP, planning, prevention, proportional representation, provincial, social responsibility, stv, sustainable living, vote
We are in the last days going into the May 12th provincial election here in BC.
I thought I’d share some final thoughts…
Vote Here (flickr credit: myJon)
If you care about the environment, and have concerns about the unbalanced power held by corporations, especially in light of what appears to be the Liberal agenda to sell out public infrastructure / legacies to corporations, then you should definately watch the video here: http://www.callingfromthecoast.com
In the last election I Did not vote Liberal because they basically said “You don’t want the dishonest NDP do you?”, and I didn’t vote NDP because they basically said “We hate everything the Liberals stand for”, so I voted Green because they spoke of a triple bottom line of Economic, Ecological and social responsibility. It was the freshest thing I had heard in Canadian politics since the Reform party was formed.
This election, I think I must stop the Liberals who seem to want to sell everything they can to greedy corporations. BC-rail, BC-Hydro transmission, BC-Gas, BC-Tel… “What does it profit a man to gain the world and lose his soul?” There is more to life and government than money. Much more. Justice, compassion, vision, planning, responsibility, leadership, inovation. Money? come on some of the things being sold are irreplacible.
I’m not impressed with the green party this election, because our local candidate keeps mentioning the legalization of marajuana on par with other issues. Serious hit to your credibility guys. THAT green agenda is something entirely different than the one I’m concerned with.
This leaves me with the NDP. I don’t think their record is much worse than the Liberals, and when I look at the Millenium line and much of the provincial land reserves, the NDP deserve full credit.
The only thing I’m excited about this election is the STV, the “BC-STV” to be precise. After researching it, I’ve now blogged about BC-STV here, and here.
BC-STV in 3 easy steps. (video)
1. At the polling station you mark your choices 1,2,3,4…. instead of marking an X by only one candidate.
2. Your riding or electoral district is joined with others to contain more than one MLA. (same total number of MLAs)
3. Your vote goes to your first choice. If there is a surplus of votes for that candidate, or if that candidate is eliminated, then your second choice comes into play (and so on). Your vote goes farther. The BC Citizens Assembly on electoral reform explains this in detail in their website. Read their PDF “how the votes are counted”
BC-STV gives British Columbia the opportunity to have proportional representation in the legislature. It will likely weaken the “2 party pendulum effect” we have been seeing where policy swings far to the left and far to the right. This should lead to more moderate and stable government policy. This should reduce the party rhetoric because MLAs are going to have to work WITH each other.
By the way “The Corporation” is pretty much required viewing if you want to be informed about the world around you. Check out the copy at your local library.
Cheers friends, make me proud, vote for BC-STV and give that first video a watch.
Greg.
Filed under: lifehacking, Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: cost benefit, environmental, free, lifehacking, money, save money, social responsibility, sustainable living, tips
I’m going to let you in on a little secret… The beauty of this secret is that it scales really really well, so the more people you tell, potentially the more people who can contribute and benefit.
freecycle logo
I’m talking about free-cycle. You probably have a free-cycle group operating in your area. The concept is really simple. If you want something, you ask for it, and if somebody wants to give you that thing, they will contact you to come and pick it up. If you have something you want to get rid of, you post it and people will contact you to come and pick it up.
Our family started with a micro-wave stand. We probably could have got $15 bucks for it, but really… I don’t want to operate a garage sale, I don’t want to fight with someone over whether I’ll take $12.50 rather than $15, and well I really just want to get rid of it so it doesn’t waste my space. My “interest” is unloading something I don’t want to keep in my house. The other person’s “interest” is in getting a free microwave stand. The environment’s “interest” is that a piece of furniture did not need to be manufactured, stored, shipped and sold. (We’ve previously talked about “The Story of Stuff”) The object’s “interest” is that it becomes useful rather than just wasting space. Sound “interesting?”
This truly is “re-cycling” something useful to another person. Because there is no exchange of money or other consideration, the opportunity for fraud / theft etc is super low (making this safer than other systems where money is exchanged for goods).
It works quite well, and I’m really pleased with the free wooden rocking chair I’m looking at across the room. Not everything you ask for will be given. “Lego” is a hard sell. Nobody wants to give up their “Lego”! It is an email group. So don’t use your work email. use a “junk email” that can receive a steady stream of offers.
Getting started with free-cycle.
1. Chose a “junk” email address to use, because you are going to get lots of emails.
2. Find a group in your area by visiting free-cycle.org and typing in your city
3. Read the “rules” (guidelines) so you learn what kind of behaviour fits with free-cycle
4. Start reading and respond to items that interest you.
It is better to give than to receive. Freecycle helps you do both in a way that is responsible; socially, fiscally and environmentally.
Cheers! Enjoy the free stuff.
Greg.
Filed under: lifehacking, Quality, Excellence & Design, Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: auction, bargain, compare, cost, cost benefit, haggling, learning, lifehacking, markup, money, price, price tag, price versus value, quality, retail, save money, social responsibility, value proposition
I grew up in a world where the price on the price tag was the price you paid. Being a shrewd consumer involved shopping around for the same product with a lower sticker price. Although I did attend an auction or two in my childhood, that was an experience far removed from our weekly shopping trips. I grew up learning that price was important, but quality was also important so the product would last and not need replacement or repair. So sometimes paying a little more for better quality meant conserving money in the long run. I want to pay the least and conserve my money for use elsewhere, but with a growing understanding of where our products come from, I won’t knowingly choose a low price at the expense of others or the natural environment. In this journey from fact to face negotiation, to automated Internet transactions and corporate marketing strategies, It is easy to lose sight of the people on the other sided of the transaction whose welfare must remain a part of the equation.
(flickr credit: sharpstick's photos)
In married life, the Internet has allowed us to compare prices without actually having to visit stores (much like the telephone allows), in fact we can compare prices without actually interacting with another person. It feels like a safe anonymous inexpensive activity. Ebay started introducing us to live on the wild side by bidding for things at “less than” the asking price. Until recently this was the extent of our financial education until I met my friend Cindy at work and she introduced me to the idea of “asking for a better price”. “The worst they can say is no” she explained. So in small ways I began to assert my desire for fairer prices. Saving $200 on fees associated with buying a car, saving $15 off the price of a pair of shoes. Spotting inconsequential defects and asking the cashier for a deduction.
Experience has eroded my confidence that retail prices accurately reflect value
I remember being shocked to observe retail markup first hand when i worked at the garden centre. I saw two things that forever changed my view on pricing.
1. The first was observing products coming in at a wholesale price and immediately being marked up to a retail price that was 2 times the wholesale. The $4 items became $8 items, and the $40 items became $80 items. I was alarmed that at the garden centre 1/2 of every price was basically profit.
2. The second was re-potting plants. When a plant outgrew its 1 gallon pot, we would pull it out and place it in a 2 gallon pot surrounded with fresh dirt. So on Friday the shrub was a 1 gallon plant for $4 and on Saturday it was a 2 gallon plant for $7. In some cases the re-potting would only be half complete, and customers would pass over the 1 gallon shrubs to purchase a 2 gallon shrub (the plants were identical).
I think you will share some of the other experiences I’ve had;
- Gas wars where 2 gas stations compete on price and the cost of a litre of fuel drops and drops to ridiculous prices (like 1cent for a litre).
- Electronics where the retail price drops month after month, while other electronics like the Nintendo Wii where the retail price remains constant for years.
- Recently crude oil prices plummeted while gasoline prices remained at record high levels for over a year.
(flickr caption: Micah Maziar)
Clearly the retail price is not a reflection of value in all cases. The prices rise and fall despite constant demand and identical products. The prices you see are not the direct result of a “market effect” but rather the contrived price of marketeers. In some cases, nobody pays the same price, such as in the case of “yield management” where the airlines use complex formulas in their attempt to extract as much money as possible from each customer for a seat on the same plane.
Very recently on a trip to Mexico, I saw how a silver right for $80 could be purchased for $35. How? by haggling. A bead bracelet for $5 becomes 2 for $7 at a cost of $3.50 each. Now there are the long faces and the sad stories of large families at home in need of money, but don’t tear up, it is a game. In the 5 minutes it took you to pay $7, you supplied 1/3 of the average Mexicans daily wage. This whole process of haggling over prices felt uncomfortable to me. As someone accustomed to paying sticker price. I feel awkward haggling or arguing over price. Because the “price tag” is what the man asked, I feel compelled to pay it. After the face I am faced with the tension (maybe unhappiness) that results from having options in the price I pay. My joy at “finding a good price” is robbed from me when I realize that I could have negotiated a “better price”. When I do haggle for a “better price” I wonder if I got he best price, or did I settle too high?
(flickr credit: Pandiyan)
The only solution I have found to this unhappiness with the prices I’ve paid is the value proposition. What is the value of this to me and given this value am I content with the price I paid for this product. For me the value proposition includes; the price I must pay, the quality of the product, the level of customer service I receive and the social impact of the product through its manufacture and associated labour and waste (explained clearly in “the story of stuff“). If I am content, then it does not matter that someone else got a better price or that the price dropped the next week. I am content, I make my purchase and (unless there is a deal to refund my money when the price drops) I walk away secure that I made a choice and paid a price I was content with.
I wish you success in leveraging the “value proposition” for your own peace of mind in purchasing.
Greg.
Filed under: Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: carpool, conservation, cost benefit, environmental, health, social responsibility, sustainable living, tips
Carpooling makes sense, you’ve been enjoying the benefits of carpooling for a while, you’ve adjusted to sharing commuting space and what seemed like a brand new adventure now seems normal. Overall it has been good and you want your carpool to carry on, but there are these “minor annoyances” that are making carpooling a little bit tougher. It started with the really strong perfume that made your car smell like… really strong perfume, then there was the coffee spill on your uphostery. Life happens you know it could easily have been you, but then there were those surprises where some in your carpool just didn’t show up without letting anyone know. You waited patiently at first, now its almost a running joke that the carpool does not leave at the time you all agreed to. You have put up with these annoyances, ascribed them to personal style or just plain ignored them thinking that maybe the behaviour would improve. It hasn’t…
Does this sound familiar? I hope not, but for thousands of carpoolers, that is the reality of their carpool. The carpool finds itself held hostage to bad behaviour, rudeness, inconsideration and the ambiguity of unclear expectations in order to retain the benefits of carpooling. With the possible exception of a cement truck with no brakes, nothing will kill your carpool faster than carpoolers who don’t respect each other. Let me encouage you to prevent that situation through the following approach to carpool Etiquette;
Bono Holds the Door (flickr credit: dpnash)
Clearly outline your carpool’s rules
It is only fair. Otherwise one person’s high standards and another’s low standards could be in conflict even though nobody is actually intending disrespect or breaking a rule. By letting everyone in the carpool know about the expected standard of behaviour, everyone can be absolutely crystal clear when they are not respecting the group. Writing things down tends to make things much more clear than just chatting about them in the carpool lane at 110km/h. Since carpooling is optional, a member of the carpool who doesn’t want to abide by the rules can either negotiate, or find a carpool with more lax rules.
Abide by and enforce your carpool’s rules
The strongest teacher is example. If you are always “running a couple minutes late”, you shouldn’t be surprised if the others in your carpool also “run a couple minutes late”. If you can’t follow the rules, then don’t have them. Rules are actually there to be followed. On the other side of the equation, if there is no consequence for not following the rules, or the group is so fearful to point out infractions, then you might as well not have rules at all. If the carpool feels free to point out violations, it sends a clear message that disrespect is not accepted by the group.
Carpool Etiquette – Rules you might choose for your carpool
So what rules should you have for your carpool? maybe your carpool is composed of like minded individuals who share the same values, or perhaps there is a real diversity of backgrounds, and what means respect to one person is completely optional to another. I’ve been hunting online for a list of carpool rules and drawing from my own experience to give you the following selection of rules to strengthen your carpool and improve everyone’s experience.
- Be prompt. Perhaps you think 5 minutes is nothing, but when it happens twice a day and 3 other people are waiting you just wasted 30 minutes of other people’s time. In our carpool, we wait up to 5 minutes then we leave. Leaving work on time after work is as important as being on time in the morning. That providential meeting in the hallway at the end of the day needs to end before carpool is scheduled to leave. If carpool leaves at 7:30, then 7:32 may be fine for everybody getting settled and buckled in, but 7:39 is clearly not “on-time”.
- Don’t run errands when you are driving the carpool. This includes not stopping at the gas station. Always have your car full of gas so you don’t make your carpool sit at the gas-station while you fill up. The point of carpool is getting to and from work effectively.
- Safety first. Everyone should feel safe, so the whole carpool adjusts towards the driving style of the safest driver (not the most hesitant driver).
- Avoid strong fragrances; perfume, hairspray, scented hand lotions all have fragrances which the others who are enclosed in the air-tight vehicle may not choose.
- If your work requires you to sweat or otherwise get dirty, respect your carpool by covering their seats with towels to protect the vehicle.
- The car should be reasonably clean and odour free in preparation for the carpool. Clean seats give your fellow carpoolers confidence when they sit down in their best business clothes for the commute.
- Be sensitive with the choice of music. No music is easier to manage.
- Life happens. Call if there is a problem. Communicate early! Lots of warning lets people plan. Remember they are counting on you. So have everyone’s contact information. Yes you can phone my house at 6AM if there is a problem. Getting to work is important enough for my phone to ring.
- Let the driver drive. His job is to keep everyone safe in traffic by paying attention and using his judgement. Backseatdrivers need not apply. (imaginary brake pedals for the passenger are fine, call it a reflex).
- Set food rules; Is coffee or food allowed in the car? (each car may have different rules).
- Don’t have long cell phone conversations while you’re in the carpool. It says something if you are ignoring the person beside you while having an enthusiastic conversation with someone who is not present. Short calls to check in at home, leave reminders and take care of telephone errands are usually acceptable. (remember your audience includes those present).
- Avoid discussing controversial topics like religion or politics unless you know your fellow carpoolers well. While some people enjoy debating the issues, others may prefer a quieter commute. Depending on the enthusiasm of co-workers in your carpool, you may want other rules to limit the amount of “work” conversation that occurs en-route.
Carpooling is about relating with others.
Rules are useful and necessary for bringing order and predictability to your carpool, but be sure to employ them with flexibility for maximum impact.
- Think in terms of equity, fairness and putting yourself in the other person’s shoes.
- Discuss carpool costs together. If members agree to rotate the driving equally, then money doesn’t have to change hands. But if only one person drives the carpool, passengers generally chip in to cover the costs of gas and parking.
- Compromise where you can – They want to leave at the crack of dawn, you want to leave 30 minutes later. Try leaving at 15 minutes after the crack of dawn.
- Realize that not everyone in a carpool has the same degree of flexibility. While some members may be leaving a “spare” $23,000 SUV in their driveway, others may be single car families with much less flexibility since the rest of their family may have plans for the car when it is not driving the carpool.
- Keeping money out of the equation may move you from a transactional carpool which is interested in the exact dollars and cents owed towards a relational carpool where you focus on giving and receiving a benefit.
- Consider seating arrangements. Those needing more space or prone to car-sickness up front, and the most compatible or compact folks in the back seat where there is less room.
It is my hope that the tips I’ve shared above make your life and your carpool better. If you have tips or carpool experiences to share, hit the comments below. Thanks! Greg.
Filed under: Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: carpool, conservation, cost benefit, environmental, health, money, safety, save money, social responsibility, sustainable living, tips
So you are interested in the idea of carpooling but you aren’t sure it will work for you. Don’t worry, you aren’t alone. Most carpoolers have stood in your shoes and wondered about the benefits and costs of carpooling. With some encouragement and a little experimentation you can make carpooling work for you. The following tips are born of my experiences and are provided to help you increase the success of your first foray into carpooling.
carpool lane (flickr credit: Richard Drdul)
1. First of all, take “Baby steps” and “try before you buy”. Rather than committing to carpool full-time right away, test-drive the idea of carpooling. With some of the friends from my office, we started with carpooling a couple days a week. This meant that 3/5 of the days were business as usual, but 2/5 were trying out carpooling. Even if you only end up carpooling a couple days a week, you realize many of the carpooling benefits which might include; saving money, less stressful driving, carpool lanes, less wear and tear on your vehicle. Pick a duration for your carpool trial and re-evaluate at the end of that time. Say; “Well, I’m just not sure how I will feel about not having my own space on the commute, but I’d like to give this a try to see how well I do with this. For the next month, lets carpool on Mondays and Tuesdays, and evaluate at the end of the month.” Did you notice how the language was around your own experience, and not around the other person’s driving or conversational skills? This way you can easily say “No” without anyone feeling judged.
2. Pick good people, set yourself up for success. Try carpooling with people you know. Sharing a common office environment and of course knowing the people increases the safety of the situation. You might find it harder (and probably should) to drive off with a stranger in their car. Sharing an office also improves the chances that you share common working hours and will have very little conflict regarding when the carpool arrives and leaves. Choose people you are comfortable with, people you can get along with who you won’t mind having in your commuting space. Good people make all the difference in the world.
3. Schedule driving days in advance. Unless it is Christmas, nobody likes surprises. If the people in your carpool are forewarned about which day they are driving, they can; have gas in the car, have the car clean, and not promise the car to their wife that day. Having members of the carpool drive on certain days, (I always drive on Mondays) gives a rhythm and predictability to the carpool routine that reduces stress. Naturally you will want to keep things fair so on some days there will be variation in who drives. (Wednesdays could be Greg, Jen or Mo) That variation should be predictable too, so break out your favourite spreadsheet tool and build a schedule (to keep at your desk, on the visor of your car, and on the back of your door at home) so everyone can avoid being “surprised” when it is their day to drive.
4. Clearly agree on how the carpool will work. Will it be like a carpool bus-route, where the driver goes to several houses to collect people in the morning and drop them off at night, which requires only one vehicle to be in motion on a given day. This is the most car efficient, but depending on driving direction and distances, may not be the most time efficient. Will your carpool meet centrally so everyone is responsible for getting “down the hill” to the rendezvous point? This could mean adding a couple minutes of buffer to everyone’s schedule prior to rendezvous so they don’t keep anyone waiting. Will your carpool meet at the house closest to destination with cars left on the street or in a driveway? It means a lot less hassle for the person with the handy house, but uses more cars and may mean those furthest away may be commuting many more minutes a day just to make the carpool work.
6. Drive well. You just found some people that were willing to trust you with their lives on the morning commute. Honour that trust by keeping everyone safe. In fact strive to raise the safety of your driving to match the safest person in your carpool. Nobody should be scared in the carpool, and if someone expresses their fear, say “Thank you” and take it as a compliment that they felt you would be open enough to receive constructive criticism. Drive “Silky smooth”. Richard in our carpool coined that term and we look forward to a “Silky Smooth” commute every time Richard drives. This helps everyone feel comfortable, saves fuel and helps those prone to motion sickness to not feel seasick after the commute.
7. Bulk up your carpool for resilience. If you have a 2 person carpool and 1 of the 2 people can’t make it, the carpool is dead for that day. If you have a 3 person carpool and one person can’t make it, the carpool lives on. 3 and 4 person carpools are very resilient and able to continue on even if one person is sick for a week and another person has random work schedule changes… You carpool when you can, and your carpool extends benefits to whoever can carpool on a given day. Some days our carpool saves $10 in gas, other days it saves as much as $30 in gas.
8. Enjoy yourselves. It’s about community and it’s much more than a business transaction. If you are social with carpool, after a short while you will find yourself looking forward to the time you can spend with friends on the ride home. Some of the tools to improve your carpool’s enjoyability include; agreed upon audio books, baking or coffee in the morning, carefully selected music, the odd DVD movie (back seat only), and the normal exuberant conversation that comes after a long day at work. You’ll have inside jokes and your own secret carpool language in no time… Well OK maybe just some inside jokes.
Carpooling is about achieving something together that you could not on your own. With the 8 suggestions above you will greatly increase the chances that you can start carpooling successfully. Then you get to enjoy the benefits that brings.
I hope that helps! Leave your suggestions in the comments below so others can benefit from your experiences.
Greg.
Filed under: Sustainable Living & Social Issues | Tags: banks, corporation, cost benefit, Credit, crisis, government, money, moral, security, social responsibility
There is a really informative video by Jonathan Jarvis at Vimeo which provides an overview of the credit crisis.
If you have found yourself struggling to understand how everything could get so messed up, you might find this video to be quite enlightening.
The Credit Crisis Explained
Check it out The Crisis of Credit Visualized
Thanks Jonathan for the excellent explanation which was quite easy to listen to!
Quality In Life - Living Smarter... 