When I was seven years old, I joined the Girl Scouts. I loved it! I started out as a Brownie, and after several years “flew-up” to become a full-fledged Girl Scout. Through the years we went on camping trips, learned new crafts, and earned badges that we displayed proudly on our sashes. And, of course, we sold cookies.
The cookie sale was in the spring. Most years my mom managed the activity for our troop. She ordered the cookies, distributed them to the girls, and kept track of the money. Things usually went well and we always achieved our goals. That was important because the money from the cookie sale helped pay for many of our activities.
We had a pretty good rhythm with the whole process until my fifth year of scouting. There were a few new girls in the troop that did not share our enthusiasm for the cookie sale. I found out what that meant when I discovered Mom in the basement taking stock of the inventory. “We have a problem,” she declared, when she saw me coming down the steps.
“Three of the girls have returned their cookies. That’s 3 cases of unsold cookies that we need to do something about.”
“Can’t we just send them back? I thought that we were allowed to do that,” I offered.
“Just because we are allowed to do it, doesn’t mean it’s what we should be doing. We need the money from the sale for the camping trip. Besides, quitting is just plain lazy. Real scouts finish what they commit to.”
“We only have a couple of days, so you’ll just have to take one more trip through the neighborhood. Put on your best smile, knock on a few more doors and I’m sure you can finish the job. You’ll have these sold in no time!”
I looked at her like she was crazy. This was not my problem. I’d sold my allocation and even helped my friends sell theirs. I’d done my part. How was I going to sell another three cases of cookies? And then it came to me. On my last day of selling, I’d also been babysitting my four-year-old sister Kristi.
Mom had errands to run and convinced me that she could come along. What I hadn’t told mom was what that had done for sales. Kristi was about as cute as a four-year old could be. When someone opened the door, they would find her positioned on the front step with a box of cookies and a big smile. The sale was practically a sure thing.
There was another bonus I’d forgotten about. Each box of cookies cost thirty-five cents. On occasion a customer would simply round up to fifty cents and let us keep the change. With my adorable little sister as the spokesperson, nearly everyone chose to do just that.
To my mom’s surprise, I stopped arguing once she agreed that Kristi could join me in a last push for sales. Even at four years old, Kristi was a savvy bargainer. She agreed to come along once I explained about the tips, and how we would be sharing them. Everyone was happy.
By the time we covered six blocks, the cookies were sold and we felt like we were rich.
I learned a few things from that experience. Honoring commitments was important, even if it was difficult. Some things were worth the extra work involved. And with the right team and the right incentives you really can make things happen.
