Why Miss Manners Isn't Entirely Full of It
The following entry was written especially for Mommybloggers by our guest blogger, Julie of Mothergoosemouse.
I was a Girl Scout for five years. While I earned my share of merit badges and went to sleep-away camp each summer, the area of scouting in which I really excelled was cookie sales. And not because my grandmother bought a dozen boxes of Thin Mints each year (which she squirreled away in the freezer and brought out as a treat in the heat of August).
Not because I was a fabulous salesperson either. And certainly not because I spent every afternoon trekking around the neighborhood, ringing doorbells.
No, it was because I knew how to use the telephone properly, and I wasn't scared to do so.
I called all of our neighbors. And my grandmother's neighbors. And my parents' friends. I dialed, I identified myself, I asked to speak to them, I made my pitch, and I wrote down order after order after order - all while I was snug and warm inside my house.
I never called anyone who wouldn't recognize me. Nor did I send my order sheet to work with my father. I only sold cookies to those people who would have happily invited me into their homes anyway.
Fellow troop-mates accused me of cheating. I pointed out that the order sheet specifically said "A telephone call may mean a sale" and collected my prizes (along with dozens of cases of cookies that DID have to be delivered in person).
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