While driving home from work last Thursday, I saw a couple of young entrepreneurs selling lemonade. Since it’s been in the 90s here in Lubbock lately, I applauded them for their ability to apply simple supply-and-demand economics even at their age.

As other customers drove up and looked satisfied with their purchases, I couldn’t help but be reminded of one of the greatest American businessmen, Sam Walton, creator of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club. He had 10 simple rules for building a successful business:

1. Commit to your business.
2. Share your profits with all your associates, and treat them as partners.
3. Motivate your partners.
4. Communicate everything you possibly can to your partners.
5. Appreciate everything your associates do for the business.
6. Celebrate your success.
7. Listen to everyone in your company.
8. Exceed your customers’ expectations.
9. Control your expenses better than your competition.
10. Swim upstream.

So was this lemonade enterprise truly a “fruitful” one? Let’s go to the list!

1. Commit to your business

These youngsters could not have been older than ten years of age, and yet here they were, in 90-something-degree temperatures, serving plastic cups of lemonade for 50-cents each. That is dedication, my friends. 90% of failed business do so because of a lack of commitment, whether you are a Fortune 500 company or a refreshment stand.

2. Share your profits with all your associates, and treat them as partners

In my brief discussions with the young go-getters, I learned that not only were they sisters, but also saving up for equal part ownership of a new video game that they had they eyes on. Not only were they partners in their business, but they also built the company with a solitary goal they could work towards without getting distracted by the unnecessary fluff. Important and true for any business.

3. Motivate your partners

This is one of the points where improvements could be made. Granted, they were starting to get a rush in orders, and that can sometimes lead to a dropping of pleasantries. It’s important to keep in mind that your partners, if the business is set up correctly, are in the same boat as you, albeit with a different set of delegated priorities. Keep them motivated and the business will be awarded.

4. Communicate everything you possibly can to your partners

Is it too bitter? Do you need more sugar? How is the supply of ice? Is the hose water properly treated by local utility standards? These are questions about which you need constant information. They are no different than the questions at the top: Can your business survive current health care policies? Are there safe havens to protect your investments into legal tax shelters? Are the lemons locally sourced? I threw that last question in there to show the comparison; did you notice? Most likely, if you don’t the answers to these, your partners will. An open line of communication will allow your business to thrive.

5. Appreciate everything your associates do for the business.

Always be grateful. Especially to your vendors; they will make sure that the shipments arrive on time and in good shape, which is especially good at times when something goes wrong. You’ll be surprised just how many associates you will come to count as allies on your path to success, whether it’s your financial advisers, or a parent coming to check in on you. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer, but your associates CLOSEST.

6. Celebrate your success.

We must learn from the awe of a child. Every sale is a win and they know it. You can see it in their faces. Never forget that every sale is, in some way, because of something that you did; some decision you made about the company. The way you paint “Lemonade” on your sign, the style of glass pitcher you use to pour, or the attitude of the salesmen you send out to present your product. The customers always have the choice to not make a purchase from you, so when they do, celebrate and live happy.

7. Listen to everyone in your company.

Listening doesn’t mean everyone gets a decision; it is your responsibility to decide what ideas are good and what decisions are bad, but just know that a good idea can come from anywhere. So keep an ear to the ground, and just the act of listening can improve employee morale if they think they had an impact on the general operations. When the younger sister suggested that they may want to get more cups before another rush comes in, the older sister weighed that decision and decided that it was the correct one. Well done, girls.

8. Exceed your customers’ expectations.

I’ll be honest, here in the south, we love our sweet drinks. Our lemonades, our sweet-teas, our mint juleps; it’s a tried and true tradition. So the girls are facing a lot of customers with built-in expectations about quality of beverages. My expectation of a modest lemonade stand run by children was that they will cut corners and use sugared powder in place of real lemons. I was wrong. 100% real ingredients here, and my expectations were indeed, exceeded.

9. Control your expenses better than your competition.

And this is a tricky one because you could say it flies contrary to lesson #8. Top tier ingredients are a tough sell when it comes to auditing your bottom line to primary investors. Consider a rival lemonade stand using second-rate sugar powder instead of lemons, but undercutting the price by half. In this scenario, you can meet expectations at a cheaper price. I would also say that the girls could offset their expenses by using off-brand disposable cups instead of the designer Dixie cups that they had. Learn where to spend your operating capital, girls.

10. Swim upstream.

Always a work in progress. You can’t break the rules until you know the rules, otherwise you’ll be swimming without a net. A lemonade stand that might offer an array of sandwiches or baked goods? Just throwing out some ideas.

All in all, a fair attempt at starting and managing a business of your own. I ended up spending about $4.80 between several cups of lemonade and tip. Will I be a returning customer? We’ll see what the temperature is like next week.