Sep 10 2007
Why I don’t recycle.
I get people asking me all the time why I don’t recycle.
“Don’t you care about the planet?”
“Don’t you care about the lost resources by putting the garbage back in the ground?”
“Don’t you know it costs less to recycle than to create new?”
Ok… the first question is just stupid. Have you ever heard anyone say, “I hate the planet… I wish more people would pollute.”
The second two questions are about the same. If it is really less expensive to recycle, then why do I have to pay to have it hauled away? If it is less expensive, then that means companies can turn more profits by recycling and should buy my junk from me.
Bottom line is that I don’t recycle because it is just too hard. I have to pay for a the recycle bin to be outside my house and if I don’t pack it just right, they don’t take my recyclables away.
What can business learn from this?
Most people are like me. If you make it hard for them, no amount of guilt will make them change. People use too much water because water is cheap. People throw cardboard away because recycling is too hard.
If you make it easy, people will flock to what you have to offer.
Why do you think three times as many people use Google over Yahoo?
Corey Smith is the Vice President of Innovation at Fisher’s Document Systems.
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