Josh loved being a Cub Scout. He loved going on hikes and learning to tie knots. He loved playing games with the other scouts. But he didn’t love selling popcorn.

Every year the scouts sold popcorn. They set up a stand at the mall. They had a contest to see who could sell the most. Josh never won.

“I have a problem,” Josh told his dad. “I’m not good at selling popcorn.”

“How do you think you could get better?” asked his dad.

Josh thought. “I could see what the top sellers are doing?”

“That’s a great idea,” said his dad. “It sounds like a good way to solve your problem.”

Josh watched his friend Iggy while he was selling popcorn. Iggy was a top seller. Josh noticed that Iggy smiled and chatted with people walking by. Josh usually just stood around quietly until people talked to him. But he thought he’d try it Iggy’s way. Just to see if it worked.

The next time someone walked by, Josh said “hello!” He introduced himself and said that he was selling popcorn for the Cub Scouts.  It worked! Josh sold a whole box of popcorn.

But it didn’t always work. Josh felt like he had more to learn. So he watched Iggy again. This time he noticed that Iggy told people what the money from the popcorn sales would be used for.

The next time he talked with someone, Josh said, “we are raising money to go on a camping trip.” That made the person smile. And they bought some popcorn!

At the end of popcorn season Josh still hasn’t sold the most popcorn. But he had sold a lot more than ever before! “I’ve learned a lot,” he told his dad. “And I had a lot more fun, too.”