Are You Tired of Being Green?

Admit it. Sometimes being eco friendly is just a wee bit frustrating. It’s challenging even when you’re used to it. There are only so many parts of being green that can really feel routine when you know there are easier but less eco friendly choices out there.

I think we all feel the temptation at times to skip the green solution and do things the easy way. To drive where we could walk or ride a bike. To skip the search for organic or local produce. To shop without worrying about where the products came from, what they’re made from or how they were made. To give in and let the kids have whatever random plastic toy they’re begging for that you know will be forgotten in a week if you buy it.

Most of us will give in at one point or another on these things. We don’t have perfect willpower. But sometimes it’s all just so overwhelming that we want to just quit for a time.

How do you get past that?

Take a Hike

You heard me. Take a hike. Get outta here!

Seriously, go reconnect with nature. Head out to a favorite hiking trail, favorite beach, whatever really helps you to enjoy nature at its finest.

If you can do this regularly so much the better, but that isn’t possible for all of us. Get out into nature as often as you can to help yourself remember just why you want to be eco friendly in the first place.

Figure Out What isn’t Working for You

Often frustration with being green isn’t so much the whole being green thing. It’s one particular thing that just isn’t working for you. Maybe you’re one of the unlucky ones who just doesn’t do so well with CFLs. Maybe buying organic produce and free range meat is adding a stress you just can’t quite cope with on your budget.

Whatever is causing the problem, think if you really need to continue it. For foods, look at which ones are really a priority to get organic for you. It matters more on some foods than on others.

If you just don’t like the light quality from CFLs, think about other ways you can save energy. There are lot of choices out there. Maybe something else would work better for you, such as drying your clothes on a clothesline or remembering to completely shut down your computer at night.

You can always come back to the frustrating parts later. You could make more progress overall by skipping things that aren’t going too smoothly at the moment.

Slow Down

How many changes have you tried to make recently?

Much like figuring out what isn’t working for you, you should be noticing if the changes are coming too fast for you. Most people don’t do so well with a ton of changes being made all at once. Take it a little bit easier for a while or even stop adding new eco friendly habits.

It’s okay to feel frustrated with eco friendly living. It’s a difficult process for most of us. But try not to let frustration stop you. Take a deep breath, then another, and figure out what’s going wrong. Once you know where the problem is, you can start working on the solution.