Are you a Green Freelancer?

These days, everyone’s talking about going green. Before b5media’s business channel became Bizzia, I actually wrote the green business blog, and there was definitely no shortage of news and ideas about being more environmentally friendly. I also write for Green Options media, so I’m no stranger to sustainable concepts.

And I try to be a green consumer. I use reusable shopping bags. I buy organic and certified products. I changed to CFL light bulbs. But am I a green freelancer?

Sadly, the answer is often “no,” and I’m trying to change that!

As a freelancer, you’re really running a small business. You might be the only employee, but being based from home doesn’t mean you’re not legitimate as a businessperson. Here are some tips you can use to go green as a writer, not just as a consumer:

• Turn off your computer at the end of the night. This is a biggie for me. I have a horrible habit of just shutting the lid to my laptop and going to sleep. It takes all of ten seconds to shut down and unplug your computer – do it!
• Email contracts instead of mailing or faxing them when you can. The less printing you do, the better. If nothing else, you at least save using an envelope! Ask your clients to email contracts as well, and save them somewhere safe. You don’t need to print them out unless you need to enforce something.
• Work outside, at the library, or at an Internet cafe if you can. That way, you aren’t tempted to sit with the TV and lights on at home all day. At a library or cafe, the lights would be turned on anyway.
• Get on board with online banking and bill paying. It really is fairly safe as long as you’re smart with your password choices and privacy settings, and it can save a lot of paper.
• Keep your work station clean. When things are cleaner, they last longer, in general. For example, you’ll have to replace electronics less frequently if they aren’t gunked up with dust and dirt. Don’t forget to use an environmentally-friendly cleaning product. (ps, isn’t “gunked” a great word? I don’t actually think it is a real word, but it’s a great term that we use at home a lot).
• Be efficient about emailing and Google searches. It might have less of an impact on the environment to email than to writer a letter to someone, but it still uses energy. Google searches use energy too. I once calculated how much energy I use doing Google searches every day, and it was embarrassing. Be efficient when you’re online for work.

Got a tip for going green with your freelancing? Leave it as a comment!

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Image via sxc.hu.