How I Reduced My Gasoline Expenses by 40%
June 10, 2008
My daily commute averages just under an hour assuming I leave home by 5:45 in the morning and make my return trip before 4:00pm. Now, when I accepted my current position at LUCRUM as Marketing Manager gas was about $3.00 per gallon. Roughly 100 days later, it is hovering at just above $4.00 per gallon, and showing no signs of plateauing. That represents a substantial increase, and one which costs me quite a bit of real money. I am fortunate to own a very fuel efficient vehicle, but still need to fill up multiple times in a traditional 5 day work week. After much thought and careful consideration I have found a way to reduce my gasoline expenses by 40% a month. Let me explain how.
When I am not listening to books on cd from the library during my daily commute, I tend to listen a fair amount of talk and news on the radio. I am constantly barraged with “what to do about soaring gas prices?” Generally the answer given is something like, fewer SUV’s and more fuel efficient cars, use bio-fuels, tax the oil companies, switch to alternative fuels, move to the city and walk to work, drill for more oil, etc… I hear Senators, Congressmen, Presidential Candidates, The President, American Consumers, Business Owners, and Foreign Dignitaries all expound on how to solve this pressing issue. From liquid coal to switchgrass, ANWAR to Ethanol, hydrogen to methane to propane, there are a multitude of solutions, but none that is viable today. At least that is what you think….
Now all of these ideas have merit. While I agree with some more than others, you can make rational arguments that any of these solutions could yield marginal decreases in the price of fuel. But marginal decreases are not what we need. You see, while these ideas are all sound, they treat the symptoms of the problem. We need something to strike at the root. The game itself must be changed. We spend an inordinate amount of time placing the blame on “big oil” when we are reluctant to change our behavior in the face of price increases. Simple economic theory will tell you that these companies are going to charge as much as they can until the behavior of the marketplace forces them to change. Consumers have given these companies no form of retribution for raising prices. We continue to fill up, drive to the office, and complain about high prices, but we do nothing.
I am here to tell you that there is a simple way to reduce your personal dependence on foreign oil at the micro level. At the same time, this way could improve the environment, enrich our personal lives, reduce company expenditures and increase workforce productivity exponentially. The real alternative fuel is utilizing collaboration technology and the internet to get more work done, more efficiently, and at a much lower cost.
Collaboration Technology has allowed me to work from home on average 2 days per week. Thus, by this simple change in behavior I have reduced my consumption of gasoline by roughly 40%. I would like to increase that to 4 days a week, but baby steps are required for both me and my employer. Thus, I am sticking with 2 as the goal for now. Now, I ask you, what the net effect would be if consumers across the country were to embrace this trend? Well there are a few simple conclusions that come to mind.
First, by reducing the demand for gasoline, the overall supply would naturally increase. Now, the math does not work out exactly the same on a large scale as some people just can’t work remotely. Nurses, Doctors, Truck Drivers, UPS, etc… So the aggregate reduction in demand would admittedly be less than 40%. Still, if those who could work remotely chose to do so 2 days per week, the effect would be very noticeable. Include in this number those who are in sales, logging countless miles of windshield time to meet with clients in person and the impact increase more. Collaboration technology, delivered via the internet, empowers people to effectively “be in the same workspace” without ever leaving home. Let’s see switchgrass do that. Now this has a direct effect on gas prices in that Less Demand = More Supply = More Pressure to Lower Prices!
Now assuming that the distribution of remote office days was spread evenly across the work week, there would be a noticeable improvement in traffic patterns. Highways would be less congested - leading to safer driving, less gridlock, and as a result increased fuel efficiency. (Cleaner Air would be an added benefit, but that is another post.) Greater fuel efficiency would translate into reduced demand for gasoline. Again, Less Demand = More Supply = More Pressure to Lower Prices.
I don’t know about you, but I believe that if this trend were noticed, oil companies would act to stop it before it became a cultural norm by… lowering prices. Again the consumer benefits. Should this trend catch on and expand to 3 or 4 days a week, a virtuous cycle would develop, with oil companies again needing to reduce prices to entice you back into your car. Now the consumer would have a choice again, and oil would develop more of an elastic demand pattern. In short there would be real and measurable consequences to increasing prices - consequences which today don’t exist.
Finally in the benefits column is the fact that by working remotely 2 days a week, I recapture at least 4 hours of time that can be spent more productively. Exercise, family time, reading, working, and other activities easily fill the void created by eliminating my commute. Time is truly our most precious commodity, not oil. Giving me back 4 hours of productive time outweighs any economic benefits offered up in the first two reasons. More time = happier worker = lower turnover = more profits for company
So, in summary we would have fewer cars on the road, filling up less frequently, more empowered consumers, a better environment, and a more efficient workforce. Personally, by adopting this work model, I have more time, more money, and I am a better employee. It is just that simple.
I truly believe that the technology world needs to speak out about the concept of Collaboration as the Alternative Fuel of the Future. We are operating modern businesses on a factory model created to optimize the businesses of the industrial revolution. This system required people to work as machines, and the machines to be present to add value. This paradigm is no longer relevant for many of us, yet we continue on with business as usual. It is time to begin to use the collaborative tools of Enterprise 2.0 to solve problems in new and innovative ways. IT should be leading the charge in reducing the dependence on foreign oil, and allow us to get beyond simply blogging about how we hate high gas prices.
More to come on this concept in future posts. I would love to hear your thoughts on how collaboration can change the world. Please share your comments.
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David - working at home (aka telecommuting) has been tried for years, yet most seem to be very unproductive. How does having Collaboration tools ensure that you continue to remain as productive at home as you are when at the office?
Great question - the long version of that answer will soon appear in a blog post. The short version is that by using collaboration software to share documents, communicate clearly, and track project progress, I am able to “be in the office” without actually “being in the office.” Telecommuting often fails because communication and accountability are difficult to maintain. Collaboration technology makes this increasingly more possible. I am extremely excited about many of the new collaboration projects that we are launching internally and externally at LUCRUM, as they will further reinforce this model - enabling us to literally create the future value of business.
I currently work 60 miles away from where I live, commuting up and down I-75 every day from Cincinnati to Dayton - one of the reasons why I’m looking for a job closer to home.
My current work situation is such that I’m required to be here every day. I’m glad to have a car that is paid off, reliable (over 208,000 miles!) and relatively okay on gas mileage.
Until I get my next job, we simply have adjusted our lifestyle for the increasing gas prices.
Gas prices are becoming a major part of employment decisions. I personally have to drive 70 miles a day and pay $45 a month for parking. My car gets good milage, but requires premium fuel $$$$$ ( not an issue in 2002 when purchased it. ). With a new baby in the house and my wife leaving her job, this has changed from a financial inconvenience to a major financial expense.
Telecommuting is a big benefit if the individual has the ability to self manage themselves. Working from home takes discipline and time management. Many people can not handle the distractions of being home. A person telecommuting needs to have a home office where they can get away from the distractions and and agreement with spouses and family that they are not to be disturbed while in the office during certain hours. If they have kids, they can plan activities at lunch time to break up their day.
When I work from home, I find my self more productive in that I can work during the time of my normal 2 hours of commuting to the office. I also can work longer on a difficult problem without having to stay late at the office ( and I still get a hot dinner! ). There are may days when I do not have meetings and I am just working on fixing application code. I could do this from the beach in Maui. Location does not matter. When working from home I also am more comfortable with putting in hours on the weekend when needed. If I’m racking my brain on a difficult problem and not making progress, I can take a break a mow the grass. Getting away from the issue clears my head. I can now work on the problem into the evening instead of rushing home from the office to mow before it rains.
How do you measure productivity? Is the person getting their work done in the same amount of time and at the same level of quality as when they are in the office? Can they be contacted when needed? If so, what does it matter where they actually do the work?
It is nice when the only accident that I have to deal with on the way to work is tripping on my slippers in the hallway : )
- Jeff