Setting Small Sustainable New Year’s Resolutions Can Have a Big Impact

– January 20, 2022 –

Setting a sustainable New Year’s resolution can be a great way to change your business positively. However, establishing a resolution and sticking to it doesn’t exactly have a hand-in-glove relationship. According to a recent study by Scranton University, only 19% of people complete their resolutions. Reasons for that are because many often get discouraged early or choose vague goals (like “be more sustainable”).

Rather than fall victim to the New Year’s resolution slump, we’re looking to do a resolutions reset by three simple steps your business can take to embark on a sustainable journey in this new year.

Education: Learn how to recycle correctly and be in touch with consumer-buying habits

A critical step that can make a difference in setting a sustainable resolution is learning how to recycle and separate waste correctly. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, recycling and composting divert about 94 million tons of material away from landfills each year. This is roughly 30% of America’s waste.

It’s tempting to chuck out old or used items. But by throwing these items away, you’re adding more waste to your trash bin and increasing your spending on new things. However, suppose your company learns how to avoid recycling mistakes and the temptation to be a “wish cycler” instead of a recycler. In that case, we can boost our recycling percentage (for brighter future) while also making your business more economically sufficient.

Something else to keep in mind regarding education is how consumers are starting to vote green with their wallets. This is causing businesses of all shapes and sizes to analyze consumer sentiment continually. People are beginning to learn more and more about the environment, climate change and its effects, which, in turn, changes their buying habits. So, whether you’re selling cars or fixing them, working in construction, running a restaurant or grocery store, be in touch with what’s going on in the world as education and awareness cause people (your customers) to reassess their purchasing habits and the type of services they look for.

Plan: Strengthen your sustainability DNA with actionable steps to operate mindfully and profitably

While this step may produce a Twilight Zone “whoa” for being a goal about setting goals, it’s a crucial one. As mentioned above, being vague with your resolution will keep success more out of reach. Instead, putting in the work and going through the educational process, sharing that wisdom with your employees, and drawing up a plan will make adopting sustainability more tangible and achievable. Whether it’s using up items before replacing them with trendier or newer ones, cutting down plastic use, or sorting through packaging to recycle cardboard, specific and measurable goals are going to motivate action.

Have Pride: If you’re working hard to be sustainable, help your company have joy in that

Lastly, if you educate your employees and reveal why your company is doing it, everyone is more likely to take pride in it. Like anything else, if you don’t see a purpose, it will fall by the wayside very quickly.

An easy way to handle this is to break down your resolution into small steps and celebrate each one as you accomplish it. Of course, we often celebrate the big wins, but those little victories can be even more inspiring, especially when you have a community to hold you accountable. And you can expand that community by working with other changemakers who will support you and cheer your company on as you set off on this new sustainable adventure.

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