My Entrepreneurship Story




The first time I remember being exposed to entrepreneurship was when I joined Girl Scout troop 90 as a little Brownie Scout at the beginning of elementary school. My brothers were all in Boy Scouts and I saw them selling giant tins of delicious chocolate covered caramel popcorn and winning cool prizes, like pocket knives and bow and arrows, for their earnings. But I couldn't let my brothers have all the fun, so I begged my mom to find me a Girl Scout troop. 

I loved everything about Girl Scouts. We held monthly meetings where we would choose different badges or activities that we wanted to work towards earning, in things like gardening, scrapbooking, horseback riding, dancing, inventing, volunteering, and cybersecurity. (The badges they have today are even better!) We went on some camping trips, although our troop leaders joked that we did more glamping than camping. (Let's just say, we were not very adventurous girls. Clean, air conditioned cabins were the only way to get us in the woods.) And we learned all of the Girl Scout traditions, such as wearing our infamous uniforms, reciting the Promise and Law, and singing our beloved Girl Scout songs. 

But, the BEST part about being a Girl Scout was, of course, selling everyone's favorite cookies! I would load up my wagon and go door-to-door all throughout my neighborhood selling cookies. We would also sell cookies as a troop all over town at different grocery stores and businesses. I learned how to craft the perfect sales pitch, how to solve problems, how to handle rejection, and that it takes a tremendous amount of hard work to run a business. It was hard work, but I loved every minute of it, and looking back I'm so grateful that I had the opportunity to hone my entrepreneurial skills at such a young age. 

Once cookie selling season was over, my troop decided to put all of our earnings together to take a trip to Savannah, Georgia, the birthplace of Girl Scouts founder, Juliette Gordon Low. During the trip we learned about the rich history of the organization and made some of the best memories. I stayed with my troop for many years and moved up from a Brownie to a Junior to a Cadette with the same group of girls. Many of us are still friends today. 


Why ENT 3003: 

I decided to enroll in Principles of Entrepreneurship for two reasons: As an advertising major, I needed one more business credit to complete an outside concentration in Business. If I was required to take another business credit, I wanted it to at least be a subject I am interested in and that might help me in the future. Over the past year or so I have thought of various ideas that could become business opportunities in the future. I hope that by taking this class I can develop a skillset that will help me, should I ever decide to pursue one of those businesses some day. 

Comments

  1. Oph06February 2, 2020 at 4:58 PM

    Unfortunately I was never a Girl Scout, I enjoyed how your enthusiasm lasted so many years and is shown through your writing! My favorite part of the year is Thin Mint Season (As I have dubbed it). Selling cookies as a child definitely gives you a sense of positive spirit and being able to save for a trip with memories that you could carry with you has some weight! I believe this class is beneficial to those who want to work in the business sector. Understanding your customers better will help you pitch to them successfully. Good Luck!

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  2. Zach AppeloFebruary 3, 2020 at 9:55 AM

    I love how you relate entrepreneurship all the way back to the girl scouts! Experiences like this have been overlooked in other posts (mine included) but this is a great thing to point out. There are so many formative experiences we have when we are younger that are directly or indirectly related to entrepreneurship or running a business. For me, sports were really important. I learned a ton about leadership playing football and basketball which will be super valuable, especially if I become an Entrepreneur!

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