COMMUTING IS BAD FOR BUSINESS

I’ve done the commute, mostly into Toronto, and I tried to be a big boy about it, but I couldn’t get around the notion that it was killing me. The Economist reports on a recent study done in Sweden that concludes that if you commute more than 40 minutes, you are 40 percent more likely to get divorced. I moved my office to Burlington around 12 years ago, and moved my home there 3 years ago. I walk to work, walk home for lunch even. I drive about a tenth as much as I used to and I eat meals prepared at home. I can work until 6 and be home at 6:07. I can’t tell you what a difference it makes. But best of all, or at least as important, my work is far better than it ever was. Now part of that can be blamed on being older and having more experience, but I think a better lifestyle leads to much better work. I think we’ll see more companies considering how to get people to live closer to work. It will be very good for business, our economy and our well-being.