Home Office Answers

Is your desk covered in  hot pink and yellow Post-It notes pasted all around your computer, then it might be time for you to switch  to Postica. It’s a new application that creates virtual sticky notes that can be shared with friends.

You can create a sticky note, choose your color (one for each type of note works good), and drag it. Postica remembers the location of your sticky note so it will look the same on every computer.

It’s fairly simple to attach a file, change the color of a note, and e-mail it to another user.

You can even send notes to friends and family if they don’t have an account.

If you are still using paper post it’s, go virtual check out Postica.

For Earth Day here’s an easy to implement tip to get you started saving paper.
Print this page for your receipt.

I think those are the infamous words I read every time I make an on-line purchase.

This used to be my routine, print the receipt page, lay it on my desk, find the receipt about 3 weeks later, while looking for a completely different paper and put it in a file in my desk drawer in case I need it later.

I can honestly say I don’t think I have EVER needed that paper for anything.

Since committing to making my home office green I have started looking for ways NOT to print things.  A receipt from an on-line purchase has turned out to be one the easier things to not print for me. 

Once you have a system in place, saving your on-line receipts in your computer is easy.

Step 1

Find a PDF Printer you like.

Let me explain.

The word printer here is likely to cause confusion.  If you are like me, when you see the word printer you automatically think printing on paper; however when you see “print to PDF” (Portable Document Format) there is no paper or ink involved. 
Printing to PDF is geek speak for saving your document in a PDF format.  I know that sounds complicated, but trust me it is not.  
The best way to understand it is to try it.

Find a PDF Printer you like.

There are plenty of free ones available.

I use Green Print, a couple other popular ones are CutePDF and DoPDF. 

Follow the download and install instructions on the site you have chosen.  Once the software is installed you are ready to start digitally saving your receipts.

When the “print this receipt” box appears, select print like you have done in the past.  When this box pops up select your PDF Printer.

Now click ok. 

You should set up a digital filing system that works best for you and save your receipt in a folder that you will be able to locate easily should you ever need it.

Give this system a try and let me know what you think.

After I reviewed the staggering impact my paper bills have on the environment I started wondering about the impact of the countless coupons I receive in the mail everyday.

I did a rough estimate of the amount of coupons and fliers I receive and here are the results from the pay it green calculator.

Paper 20.2 pounds of paper wasted
Water 192 gallons of wastewater
Gasoline 6.5 gallons of gas
Greenhouse Gases 360 pounds of greenhouse gases
This amount of greenhouse gas is the equivalent of: 354 miles driven in your car
50 square feet of forest deforestation

I did not input any return mail so the numbers are very real. WOW

There are some alternatives to paper coupons.

1) Cell Fire

Cellfire delivers paperless coupons to your mobile phone so you’ll never have to clip coupons again. Cellfire is a download to your mobile phone and the catch, if there is one, is the company has to list their deals thru Cellfire. The benefit if you just pulled up to Ben & Jerry’s and want a coupon for your RockyRoad cone you can simply check on cellfire for any Ben & Jerry’s coupon codes.
I haven’t tried this service yet myself, if you have please tell me about it in the comments below.

2) Wifi On-line Codes

I really like the idea of giving of getting a coupon code right when I need it.
If you use a service like Brad’s Deals and have WiFi on your phone that’s all you need. If you are at BestBuy and decide to make a purchase you can go to Brad Deals and find the best coupon and then show the clerk the screen, with the coupon code at check out. It’s as simple as that.

3) Store Coupon Codes in your cell phone

If you don’t have Wi-Fi on your phone, you need to plan ahead a little to use your cell phone in lieu of paper coupons. Look up the coupon codes on line and store them in your phone contacts before you leave home.
I suggest using a contact name like X- Best Buy, to make it easy to find and delete when you are finished. Once you are at the check out simply provide the cashier with the applicable code number for your purchase.

Do you have other suggestions for paperless coupons?

  We recently covered Go Green with On-Line Bill Paying  and how it could help you organize your office and save you money at the same time. 

I have already switched my bills to electronic bill paying wherever possible, but I couldn’t resist trying this green financial footprint calculator to see how much I am saving.

By switching to electronic bills, statements, and payments, I conserve the following resources in 1 year:

Paper 5.6 pounds of paper saved

Water 53 gallons of wastewater prevented from discharging into lakes, streams and rivers

Gasoline 7.2 gallons of gas saved by not mailing your bills, statements, and payments

Greenhouse Gases 223 pounds of greenhouse gases avoided

This amount of greenhouse gas is the equivalent of: 219 miles not driven in your car

3 trees planted (and grown for 10 years)

31 square feet of forest preserved from deforestation

I must admit I am feeling pretty pleased with myself right now, saving all that with such an easy change, WOW!

Click on over to use Pay it Green’s calculator to see how much you, and your friends and family, can save by going with green with on-line billing.

If paying on-line is a new process for you please read our tips before you start.

If you have some companies that don’t offer on-line bill paying be sure to give them this web site link with your next check, maybe they will consider it.

Go Green One Change at a Time