Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Telecommuting - The Ultimate In Hypermiling

Today I joined the ranks of telecommuters. I am only doing it one day a week for now, on a trial basis, but even so I am pretty stoked. With hypermiling, as much as I do of it at least, it takes just under a quarter tank of gas per day to drive to work. Averaged out, it should save me at least a tank of gas per month, which at the moment costs $65.

Today was my first day, as I mentioned above. Normally I get up at 5:30 a.m. to leave the house between 6:30 and 7:00 a.m. I move very slowly in the morning, so I have to set my alarm to 5:00 in order to click snooze for a half hour. This morning I thought I would get up at 7:00 in order to eat breakfast and have a nice casual morning before beginning work at 7:30. My son had other plans. We were awakened at 5:45. Yep, a full 15 minutes later than any other day. What a great start this morning. :)

As a Web Developer, it makes sense for me to telecommute. My company pays for my cell phone and internet access, and provided a laptop for home use (even though it is a Mac), so why shouldn't I use what my company is providing for company business? I am very glad for the chance to test it out.

Telecommuting has been done before in my department, but it failed on each attempt. Some failures were due to misunderstandings, and others through goofing off I understand. All the more pressure on me to prove the system can work. I think today went pretty well.

My office is pretty secluded, so working at home granted me almost the same amount of privacy I usually enjoy. I had to check in with my supervisor more than normal, but that is to be expected for now. Everyone needs to see that it can work before we all breathe easier.

I will keep writing about the progress each week, and let you know how it goes. Until then, happy hypermiling, telecommuting, carpooling, or anything else you do to save gas. :)


2 comments:

Elliott - 21st Century Dad said...

Very cool! Telecommuting can be a win-win for employers and employees. One of the things I advocate vocally is work-life balance, especially now that I have children.

This is a big-picture issue too. Telecommuting reduces demand for oil.

Elliott - 21st Century Dad

Griselda Johnson said...

That is really awesome dude! Look forward to hearing how it goes.