I am craving Girl Scout Cookies right now. CRAVING. I love the Samoas and recently discovered the little thin mint ones. Oh my. We have a neighbor whose daughter was selling GS Cookies last week. They came to the door. The mom asked if I wanted to buy cookies. I said sure, who wouldn't? I asked where her daughter was. "Oh, she's over there playing with the wagon." (She was pulling a red wagon loaded down with cookies.)
I mentioned that the daughter wasn't really selling the cookies then, it was the mom. She kind of looked at me confused. I don't know why she didn't get what I was saying. SHE (the mom) was doing the actual sales, not the daughter. She still didn't get it.
So, I kindly explained that it bothered me when parents sell their daughter's GS Cookies. It is the daughter's responsibility, it is a teaching activity for young girls, and it allows them to learn how to interact with people within the concept of a transaction. The GS website states that the community activity of selling cookies inspires self-confidence in young, female entrepreneurs, and they build:
Strong Values
Strong Minds
Strong Bodies
Strong Spirit
Strong Friendships
Strong Skills
Strong Leadership
Strong Community
I don't understand how parents think any of that is going to happen if they are schlepping the cookies door to door and pushing me to buy. Please. The last time she had come around I bought 2 boxes against my better judgment. The daughter didn't even say "thank you" or acknowledge me. She just skipped off. One of our nieces is also a similar GS Cookies salesperson, and that really bugs the sh*t out of me!
So, I promised myself that if my neighbor came around again I wouldn't buy cookies unless the daughter actually did the pitch.
Well, I stuck to my promise. I didn't buy cookies. I am proud of myself for sticking to my principles. But, man oh man, I could really use a couple of cookies right now. It's about 4:00 in the afternoon, I'm into my second cup of tea, and I could use a little sugar rush. I am contemplating just eating the little brown packet of Starbucks raw sugar. I'm not even kidding.(((sigh)))
8 comments:
Good for you! And shame on the mom for not "getting it"! My daughter (who is now 12) was in Scouts from when she was 5 (as a "daisy") to when she was 11 (as a Cadet) - she had a GREAT run with it and learned a lot about independence, entrepreurship, skills, etc. (in addition to all that you mentioned). It's a great organization, and we were lucky enough to have some fabulous leaders in our troop. But as far as the sales, I stood at the BOTTOM of the driveways and basically watched, she did the "sales pitch" and everything. She never sold the most, but all her sales were "real" sales, if you catch my drift.
And yes, the Thin Mints ROCK! (I keep them in the freezer... they get cold and slightly crunchy.... absolutely delicious!)
btw.... I wrote my annual blog post about G/S cookies a couple of days ago.... I'm just waiting for my MULTIPLE other boxes to arrive. (the 3 boxes that already arrived have been eaten by my teenagers and their friends.... like little LOCUSTS, teenagers are.....) :)
You are right about that - it's not just a fundraiser (although it sure is) - it does get girls to reach out of their comfort zone a little and "close the deal". Good for you - although you are clearly suffering the consequences of sticking to your guns!
Hello!! I totally agree with you about the girl scouts being the ones being the seller of the cookies and not the parents--My Mom didn't do it for me when I was a GS! But I have to admit that right now I have $120 dollars worth of cookies in my garage that were delivered yesterday via my dog-walker who sold them for her daughter whose in "Brownies." Because we live in a small town and the country, there are not many places for the girls to go to sell cookies. So, I was asked by my dogwalker if I wanted to buy some--I took it one step farther and took an order form into my office, and wa-lah, I sold $100 in cookies for a little girl I've never met, and it made her the top seller in her little troop--I wonder how many other clients got hit up?? At any rate,it scored me some "brownie points" with my dog-walker and with the number of dogs we have and because I really like her and I need her, I did what I had to do, and I'd do it again--It's for the dogs after all! :-)
IF you get some cookies, put the thin mints in the freezer...super good that way!
i, however, will not be buying any cookies....
i totally agree with giving the girls the experience of selling...dah! i think some parents want to see who can sell the most....
xoxo
What is wrong with that Mom? geeze. idiot. ;0
My girls had to do their own sales...and of course, they always said thank you. Can you beleive for many years I had about 3 thousand boxes of those sinfully good cookies in my garage? It was so tempting to go out there with a gallon of milk and go to town.
I should have invested in a cow.
I agree with you completely! The other hidden agenda is the parents who are so competitive for their daughters to sell "the most" cookies...that may have something to do with this. Who is learning?
I was a Girl Scout leader for 7 years. The girls were not supposed to go through the neighborhood without an adult, but they weren't supposed to go off and play! Sheesh!
It always irked me a bit that the troop actually only gets about 45 cents per box (maybe it's gone up since I was in it) and they built a brand new beautiful G.S. Corporate building in downtown Manhattan. Don't get me wrong I'm all for the G.S. principles, but some of the business stuff just bothered me a little.
Post a Comment