MADreads

I’m gonna be rich

July 16th, 2009 Molly - Central

I never got around to reading Go Green, Live Rich: 50 Simple Ways to Save the Earth and Get Rich Trying by financial guru David Bach last summer, and it has been hanging over my head ever since.  Boy, am I glad I finally took the time to read this - I am going to get rich!  How’s that, you ask?  By doing easy, simple things that protect the earth and my finances.  Hmmmm.  But isn’t going organic and “green” more expensive?  I understand the idea of protecting our resources and saving the Earth, but how does one get rich?

The author doesn’t expect you to do all 50 steps, but working on even a few of them gets you on the right track to saving the Earth and saving money.  He breaks it all down for you dollar by dollar for each step–what you would save and how you would reduce if you were to follow the step.  You may be surprised that you are already doing many of the steps, in which case, reading the book will make you feel righteous and proud!

Some of the 50 ways to save the Earth:

• Maintain your car.  You will save up to $798 in gas every year if you keep your tires properly inflated, don’t haul around unnecessary weight, get a tune-up and don’t drive like a maniac.
• Get rid of junk mail.  You will not be tempted to buy anything and together we all save 100 million trees a year.  The average adult receives 40 pounds of mail a year, most of which goes to a landfill unopened.  Recycle it, and even better, call 888-5OPTOUT to cut down on junk mail, cancel your catalogs at www.abacusoptout.com or sign up for just the catalogs you really want at www.catalogchoice.org.
• Eat less meat.  You will save on your grocery bill and you will help cut down on methane from captive livestock.  Nearly a fifth of all greenhouse gas emissions caused by humans is from this.  Yikes.  You don’t have to become a vegetarian, just cut out meat one day a week to start with.
• Use compact fluorescent light bulbs.  You can save $45 over the life-time of a bulb.  CFLs use 75 percent less electricity than traditional incandescent bulbs and last up to 10 times longer.
• Vampire electricity.  Some appliances just drain electricity like crazy, even when they are not in use.  Check out the MG&E Watt’s Up Energy Meter at the library for free and start compiling a list of home appliances that suck up electricity.  You may be surprised at what an unplugged coffee pot will save you.
• Calculate your carbon footprint.  It just takes a couple of minutes and will help you gain an understanding of how your own actions and lifestyle affect the planet and your finances.  Once you know your score, you can figure out what to do to lower it.  A good place to start is Madison Gas and Electric’s C02gether.  You can access your monthly MG&E bills and calculate your carbon footprint by entering household data, monthly energy use and average amounts of monthly transportation miles, MPG and modes of transportation. You can then track and journal your efforts by registering for free at C02gether.

For me, though, it all comes down to the latte factor.  What am I spending money on that is bad for the environment and costing me money?  I am done with bottled water and paper coffee cups.  Sometimes it is a pain to haul my thermal cup and water bottle around, but I hardly think about it anymore.  Now if only I could get my boss to agree to telecommuting to work one day a week…

Entry Filed under: Nonfiction