Last year at the Clean & Tidy Home Show I talked to a lot of people about their thoughts on living sustainably as there were so many eco-friendly brands there, it felt quite inspiring. What really resonated with me though was that so many people found the concept quite overwhelming. What many people, myself included, had felt was that unless you’re doing it perfectly, making no mistakes, there’s no point.
But as someone said to me recently, we don’t need 100 people doing it perfectly, we need hundreds of thousands of people doing it imperfectly. So I decided to start something at home. I decided to start small and to give myself a break if I didn’t do it brilliantly. I decided to switch a habit or product in my home every week to live in a more eco-friendly way and then talk about it on an Insta Live.
There are weeks I miss it, because life ca be hectic as a single working mum of two, going through a divorce – and that’s OK! The great thing is that it’s been fun, I’ve talked to so many fascinating people and learned so much, and I’ve also saved money and time due to some of the switches!
I’m so thrilled that the children are onboard and actually really passionate about it – counting how many times they’ve been for a wee, not flushed and calculated how much water we’ve saved! To be fair, my son quite often doesn’t flush number 2s either!
I absolutely love doing the Insta Live and actually find it quite therapeutic and something I look forward to. So here are my top tips to becoming a home greenie:
Take baby steps
It’s really important you don’t try to do too much too quickly as life is busy and you want this to last. One small thing at a tie, makes this an easy process. If something takes more than a week to get to grips with, cut yourself some slack. Remember we aren’t trying to do this perfectly.
Find the why
For any changes you plan to make, research what this switch will mean. Switching from normal loo roll to eco-friendly versions might sound like a no brainer, but when you look at the stats as to what that switch means to the environment, it really helps you to see why you are doing this and is extremely motivating, particularly if you can find out stats!
Find the other benefits
Many of the changes I have made are actually saving me money, or will do over time. Whilst the eco benefits are the main driver, I’m not going to lie, the financial benefits are mush appreciated and encourage me to stick with this.
Pat yourself on the back
I think one of the reasons I like doing the Insta Live, is because it feels like I’m giving myself a big pat on the back. Sometimes we do great things and we don’t acknowledge them so they lose their power. You might not want to talk on social media, but find your own way to say well done to yourself, whether it’s writing it down in a letter to yourself or sharing it with friends. It’s also great to shout about it as you will hopefully be inspiring others to do the same.
Involve the whole family
If you have kids, there’s nothing better than leading by example, but making this a fun journey they can be part of will be arming them with habits they will keep for a lifetime. It’s really important to make them aware of why you are doing this, and you may be surprised by just how passionate they become about it.
Keep going
It’s fine to skip some weeks, and actually important you give yourself that space to do that, but do keep going. Give yourself a month off from new changes if you need a break, but do come back to it, reminding yourself of why you’re doing this and all the benefits you and the environment are gaining.
Last year at the Clean & Tidy Home Show I talked to a lot of people about their thoughts on living sustainably as there were so many eco-friendly brands there, it felt quite inspiring. What really resonated with me though was that so many people found the concept quite overwhelming. What many people, myself included, had felt was that unless you’re doing it perfectly, making no mistakes, there’s no point.
But as someone said to me recently, we don’t need 100 people doing it perfectly, we need hundreds of thousands of people doing it imperfectly. So I decided to start something at home. I decided to start small and to give myself a break if I didn’t do it brilliantly. I decided to switch a habit or product in my home every week to live in a more eco-friendly way and then talk about it on an Insta Live.
There are weeks I miss it, because life ca be hectic as a single working mum of two, going through a divorce – and that’s OK! The great thing is that it’s been fun, I’ve talked to so many fascinating people and learned so much, and I’ve also saved money and time due to some of the switches!
I’m so thrilled that the children are onboard and actually really passionate about it – counting how many times they’ve been for a wee, not flushed and calculated how much water we’ve saved! To be fair, my son quite often doesn’t flush number 2s either!
I absolutely love doing the Insta Live and actually find it quite therapeutic and something I look forward to. So here are my top tips to becoming a home greenie:
Take baby steps
It’s really important you don’t try to do too much too quickly as life is busy and you want this to last. One small thing at a tie, makes this an easy process. If something takes more than a week to get to grips with, cut yourself some slack. Remember we aren’t trying to do this perfectly.
Find the why
For any changes you plan to make, research what this switch will mean. Switching from normal loo roll to eco-friendly versions might sound like a no brainer, but when you look at the stats as to what that switch means to the environment, it really helps you to see why you are doing this and is extremely motivating, particularly if you can find out stats!
Find the other benefits
Many of the changes I have made are actually saving me money, or will do over time. Whilst the eco benefits are the main driver, I’m not going to lie, the financial benefits are mush appreciated and encourage me to stick with this.
Pat yourself on the back
I think one of the reasons I like doing the Insta Live, is because it feels like I’m giving myself a big pat on the back. Sometimes we do great things and we don’t acknowledge them so they lose their power. You might not want to talk on social media, but find your own way to say well done to yourself, whether it’s writing it down in a letter to yourself or sharing it with friends. It’s also great to shout about it as you will hopefully be inspiring others to do the same.
Involve the whole family
If you have kids, there’s nothing better than leading by example, but making this a fun journey they can be part of will be arming them with habits they will keep for a lifetime. It’s really important to make them aware of why you are doing this, and you may be surprised by just how passionate they become about it.
Keep going
It’s fine to skip some weeks, and actually important you give yourself that space to do that, but do keep going. Give yourself a month off from new changes if you need a break, but do come back to it, reminding yourself of why you’re doing this and all the benefits you and the environment are gaining.
