Earlier today, Rex Huppke, brilliant Chicago Tribune workplace advice columnist and author of the I Just Work Here column wrote a wonderful post that should be mandatory reading for anyone navigating the delicate office politics of Girl Scout Cookies.

I shared the column on my personal Facebook timeline and was surprised by the wonderfully supportive responses I received. That has prompted me to share my personal beliefs about the selling of Girl Scout Cookies with you.

Before I roll out my Girl Scout Cookie policy, let me state unequivocally that I am 100% pro-Girl Scout Cookies. I was a Girl Scout and have fond memories of selling the cookies. I believe that selling Girl Scout Cookies is an important rite of passage and teaches many valuable life skills, not the least of which is learning to hear and accept “no.” Goal setting. Money management. Ethics. Verbal presentation skills. Negotiations. Healthy competition. How not to eat all the cookies in one sitting. All mandatory life skills. I’m a total sucker for anyone selling Girl Scout Cookies. If you come between my stash of Thin Mints, Do-Si-Dos, or Tagalongs, I may cut you. Don’t test me on that. Let’s just assume it’s true.

So what’s my Girl Scout Cookie Policy? So glad you asked.

Little Merry Sunshine’s Official Girl Scout Cookie Policy

As mentioned above, I love Girl Scout Cookies and I strongly encourage Girl Scouts to sell them. The key words there are “Girl Scouts.” What that means is that the actual Girl Scout must approach me to purchase cookies from her. Requests must be made in-person or over the phone. Email, Facebook, Twitter, smoke signals, blog post comments, or any other form of communication not previously mentioned is not acceptable.

Now, I don’t care if Mom or Dad is there coaching Suzie on how to ask me to purchase cookies from her. In fact, I encourage it. But Suzie must ask me herself.

Why? It’s character building. Learning how to calm the anxiety that occurs while waiting for the customer to decide whether or not to purchase cookies is important. There will be many opportunities in life where Suzie will be glad she has this skill.

Here’s my promise: If your Girl Scout follows my policy and asks me politely in-person or over the phone, I will say yes and purchase at least one box.

Small print: I do have a limited budget, so don’t think I can say yes to every single Girl Scout in the world because I can’t. Sorry.

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