How To Use a Little Flattery to Expand Your Scout’s Skills

Submitted by Paula Riggins

Have you ever heard someone say Flattery won’t get you anywhere?  Well I am here to tell you that those people are wrong.  Flattery will get you anywhere and everywhere.  I suggest you take a look at the internet with all those people blogging, posting stories and oh so willing to share their opinions with anyone who happens by.  Heck I’m writing this blog now because I’m thinking I have some knowledge to share.  Now I’m not saying I can just call anywhere and get anything I want. But when it comes to leading my scout troop the world of know-it-all’s is an incredible resource.  It is one you need to learn to tap into as soon as you possibly can!

I noticed a few years ago that my scouts loved guest speakers, experts and just anything that was different from the normal old meeting.  I started looking around and sitting right there at my own kitchen table was a guy who loved carving hiking sticks.  He wasn’t too into scouting but with a little persuasion and well placed flattery he found his way to showing my scouts how he hand crafts his hiking sticks and even created a workshop for them to create a masterpiece of their own.

Next came one of his art school buddies whose creepy artwork can actually be found on the cover of science fiction books.  With a little flattery I got him to bring his artwork to a meeting and stick around while the boys painted their own creepy creation. The scouts went wild and the Artist so impressed he even one kid if he could use his idea in one of his paintings.  Talk about flattering.  When I thanked him he said he was thrilled that he had something to share and would love to come back.  He actually did when my daughter became a scout and needed an artist to speak to her troop.

Now you might be saying to yourself well yeah who has resources like that? I’m telling you right now you do.  If you or a few of your scout families are on Facebook you have plenty of resources right there.  Just keep an open mind.

When I needed a makeup artist for our Entertainment Technology badge, I message a FB acquaintance who is the High School drama director asking if he knew of anyone interested.  He shot back a name and I recognized her from one of the shows I had seen.  I sent her a nice little email telling her how much I enjoyed her work and she was flattered enough to come show my girls how to do stage makeup.  She had a pretty tough schedule to work into and it come to find out it was because she is in an upcoming show at the Ky Center for the Arts.   My girls were so impressed and they loved practicing on one another with a few tips from someone with a lot more experience than I would have brought to the table.

I do have to admit I am pretty outgoing cheerful person and I am a little more than chatty.  I honestly can’t keep my mouth shut when an idea comes to me for my girls and I have some thick skin and can handle a little rejection.  My philosophy being hey it can’t hurt to ask.  Just remain gracious and you just never know where it may lead you.  I once ask a lady at her yard sale why she was selling all her jewelry making supplies.  She said she loved it but it wasn’t profitable business. I told her she had some really pretty pieces and asked if she had any interest in showing her stuff to my daughters scout troop.  She said “NO I don’t do well with kids!.  I stayed cheerful and told her thank anyways then she offered up a whole bunch of beads for the girls to use in a project.   I totally wasn’t expecting that but hey that sounds pretty good too.

When I went home and was telling my mom about the lady at the yard sale and she said I can show them how to make beads from magazine scraps if you think they would be interested.  Oh yeah!  I was telling this story to one of the other scout moms and she said my sister makes jewelry she would probably love to show the girls the tools and some stuff she has made.  Isn’t that another requirement? Woo Hoo!

Now just to be clear I’m not trying to say that you need to be insincere with your flattery.   But spreading it around will help you find those valuable resources hiding all around you.  Another suggestion I would make is that after your visits continue the flattery in as public a way as possible.  We try and get group shots with the guest and girls then post pictures and thank you messages to their website or FB page so others can see how they are helping the community and helping to shape the girls of the future.  You never know who will see it and think I wonder if the girls would like to learn how to…..  LOL, yes it becomes a cycle that keeps on growing.

Now repeat after me, “FLATTERY WILL GET YOU EVERYWHERE!!”