Funding your dreams, or a "quota"?
I was talking to a neighbor recently who wanted to help her granddaughter, a Daisy
Girl Scout, with her first Girl Scout Cookie Program experience. During our conversation, something she said caused me concern so I’d like to address it here. She told me that her granddaughter’s Mom thought there was a "quota" to sell a certain number of cookies and understandably she was worried about her daughter meeting this goal. Thankfully my neighbor was certain there was no "quota" her granddaughter would need to reach and she is correct, but I wonder how many others may think there is?
The Girl Scout Cookie Program was designed to provide a way for Girl Scouts to have amazing adventures within their troop without having to ask their parents for the money to fund them. Many parents do not have the funds to cover these expenses and girls are able to participate in Girl Scouting without the worry of burdening their family. For those families who are blessed with the ability to fund these extra adventures, they have told us that they appreciate having their girls learn how to set a financial goal and feel the satisfaction in meeting it.
Our amazing Girl Scout Troop Leaders talk with the girls in their troops to decide on what community service projects and/or adventures they wish to participate in during the year. Based on the program goals they set, they then identify how many packages of cookies on average they need to sell to achieve those goals. This is perhaps where the confusion lies...the “goal” is heard as a “quota”?
What I know, is that most Girl Scouts love learning how to set up their own business and fund their adventures. Some of them even set a personal goal beyond what the troop goal is because in addition to what the troop earns, individual girls can also earn recognitions and even credits to attend summer camp for free or at a reduced rate.
Did you know?
• The average number of packages sold by participating GSSNE Girl Scouts is 178.
• Locally, per girl sales range from 1 package to 2,560 packages!
• Nationally, the annual sales of Thin Mints® is second to the best selling Oreo
Double Stuf, even though Thin Mints are only sold for one quarter of the year!
Caramel deLites® are in third place!
The American public loves our cookies and many are disappointed when they don’t have the opportunity to purchase cookies from a Girl Scout. So, don’t worry, with some creativity about how to reach Girl Scout Cookie lovers, your girl will likely surprise you when she is excited about funding her adventure dreams!
Warmly,
Your CEO - Pam