Having multiple talents is beneficial, but not everyone has the opportunity to gain experience in the many different fields. I am one of those people who has not had and has not taken advantage of the opportunities.
I recently decided I am going to take advantage of the opportunity to study abroad so I can accomplish my goal in my last blog post, which is to be fluent in Spanish. The next wedding I plan, I hope to be able to communicate in two different languages if needed.
During the ceremony, the piano player did not show up on time, let alone show up when the ceremony began. A few people and I were calling around looking for anyone who knew how to play the piano. All I could think about was that I wish I knew how to play so I could get up there with no worries. Since that was not an option and I knew many of the people attending the wedding, one little boy stood out to me. One of the fourth graders that attends the school that the bride and I work at, competes in many piano competitions and has won many. He is a natural on the piano. I knew if the piano player did not show up, I would have to ask this 8 year old boy to get up there and show off his skills.
Luckily, the guy finally came right before his part. Secretly, I would have much rather used the little boy because it would have been extremely cute.
Overall, I knew that if I knew how to play, it would have saved my self a gray hairs.
I am happy to say the wedding we remarkable and no one in the audience knew that there was one single problem. Everything went smoothly.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
The Big Day pt. 1
I recently had the opportunity to plan a wedding for a co-worker. The experience was overwhelmingly amazing. As you all know my career goal is to be an event planner but I have gone back and forth on whether to be a wedding planner or an event planner. I have been told by a few professionals that it is wise to choose one. This experience has helped me decide that I would love to do both. I would love to continue wedding planning on the side, but make event planning my main career.
The first thing the bride and I did was go to the Bridal Extravaganza. This event is a huge event at the George R. Brown Center for soon to be brides. Brides are running around like they are getting married the next day. There are many booths with employees promoting their businesses. You can find anything from cakes to photography to great honeymoon deals. Catering businesses make it their duty to make the brides feel special by letting them taste test the food. The bride and I grabbed brochures and flyers from every booth she needed one from. I took each home and calculated which companies best fit her budget. Luckily we were able to eliminate many of the companies because so many friends and family of hers wanted to do her a favor.
Most brides have a budget, so it is very beneficial to have close family and friends that are willing to help. The DJ, the cake, a singer for the ceremony and the wedding planner (me) were all favors to her. The most important lesson I learned the day of the wedding is that favors DEFINITELY need backups. When people are not working for money, it may not be a priority for them to make the wedding number one on their list.
The day of the wedding I started off by running to the reception hall to check on the decorations, make sure the cake is set up and make sure the tables were labeled properly. Everything was amazing and beautiful in the reception hall. I was so excited and nervous.
Planning this wedding I learned that there are two things I would love to learn that could be beneficial to me as an event planner. The first was speaking Spanish. I am making it a goal of mine to become fluent in Spanish. A few minutes after I left the reception hall I ran into the maid of honor and we needed to find a place cool to keep the flowers for the ceremony. We found a man that works there that ONLY spoke Spanish. All I could think about was that the process of communicating could have gone so much faster and smoother if I was even decent at Spanish.
During the ceremony was when I figured out the next thing I need to learn in case of any emergency, which you can read about on my next blog.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
The first thing the bride and I did was go to the Bridal Extravaganza. This event is a huge event at the George R. Brown Center for soon to be brides. Brides are running around like they are getting married the next day. There are many booths with employees promoting their businesses. You can find anything from cakes to photography to great honeymoon deals. Catering businesses make it their duty to make the brides feel special by letting them taste test the food. The bride and I grabbed brochures and flyers from every booth she needed one from. I took each home and calculated which companies best fit her budget. Luckily we were able to eliminate many of the companies because so many friends and family of hers wanted to do her a favor.
Most brides have a budget, so it is very beneficial to have close family and friends that are willing to help. The DJ, the cake, a singer for the ceremony and the wedding planner (me) were all favors to her. The most important lesson I learned the day of the wedding is that favors DEFINITELY need backups. When people are not working for money, it may not be a priority for them to make the wedding number one on their list.
The day of the wedding I started off by running to the reception hall to check on the decorations, make sure the cake is set up and make sure the tables were labeled properly. Everything was amazing and beautiful in the reception hall. I was so excited and nervous.
Planning this wedding I learned that there are two things I would love to learn that could be beneficial to me as an event planner. The first was speaking Spanish. I am making it a goal of mine to become fluent in Spanish. A few minutes after I left the reception hall I ran into the maid of honor and we needed to find a place cool to keep the flowers for the ceremony. We found a man that works there that ONLY spoke Spanish. All I could think about was that the process of communicating could have gone so much faster and smoother if I was even decent at Spanish.
During the ceremony was when I figured out the next thing I need to learn in case of any emergency, which you can read about on my next blog.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
Monday, April 26, 2010
Benefits of Event Planning
I am happy I chose this field as my career. I feel as though I will never be working again becuase it is something I enjoy doing so much.
The first benefit of being an event planner is that EVERYONE, at some point in their lives, will have something to celebrate. It may be anything from a birthday to a religous celebration to a work social. The list goes on. Someone will always have a reason to celebrate which leads me to my second reason.
The second benefit is that this career is nearly recesion-proof. Some parts of the year may be better than others but for the most part, celebration is really popular in the American culture.
There are many other reasons that I am sure that I can think of but these two really stook out to me while deciding on my career.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
The first benefit of being an event planner is that EVERYONE, at some point in their lives, will have something to celebrate. It may be anything from a birthday to a religous celebration to a work social. The list goes on. Someone will always have a reason to celebrate which leads me to my second reason.
The second benefit is that this career is nearly recesion-proof. Some parts of the year may be better than others but for the most part, celebration is really popular in the American culture.
There are many other reasons that I am sure that I can think of but these two really stook out to me while deciding on my career.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
Sorority Soiree
The event that my partner and I have been planning is finally only three days away. We were able to expose this event all over campus and to the Houston Panhellinic Council (HPC), who is our target audience.
After weeks and weeks of planning and collaborating with the president of the HPC, we found the best way to benefit the boutique and the sororities.
The sororities can use this event as a social to get to know one anohther. This has been a goal for the HPC. Instead of the groups being rivalries, they can all come together.
My partner and I learned that not all sororties on campus are under the HPC. Some are under the National Pan-Hellinic Council. The two separate groups would like come together and form a stronger bond. This event and the activities at the event will make that happen.
Our goal as the planners is to create a relationship between us, the sororities and the boutique. We are learning many ways to make that possible.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
After weeks and weeks of planning and collaborating with the president of the HPC, we found the best way to benefit the boutique and the sororities.
The sororities can use this event as a social to get to know one anohther. This has been a goal for the HPC. Instead of the groups being rivalries, they can all come together.
My partner and I learned that not all sororties on campus are under the HPC. Some are under the National Pan-Hellinic Council. The two separate groups would like come together and form a stronger bond. This event and the activities at the event will make that happen.
Our goal as the planners is to create a relationship between us, the sororities and the boutique. We are learning many ways to make that possible.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
Monday, April 19, 2010
Media Kits
Planning this event at the Boutique has not only been about the planning and the decorative aspects. It has involved putting together a media kit which contains press releases, biographies, pictures, historical sheets, contact information, schedule, published news stories and etc.
I have had the opportunity to interview the managers, write press releases and do a lot of research on the store.
I am learning that planning an event is not all glitter and gold. It is hard work and it takes a lot of time to gain media exposure.
These media kits that my parter and I have been putting together is such an easy way to get the writers' attention. It is also an easy way to pitch the event to reporters so they can have everything they need to write about the event.
We have found it very helpful. The hard work is completely worth it.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
I have had the opportunity to interview the managers, write press releases and do a lot of research on the store.
I am learning that planning an event is not all glitter and gold. It is hard work and it takes a lot of time to gain media exposure.
These media kits that my parter and I have been putting together is such an easy way to get the writers' attention. It is also an easy way to pitch the event to reporters so they can have everything they need to write about the event.
We have found it very helpful. The hard work is completely worth it.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Successful Event In a Bag!
Tote Bag to Success
Wish Boutique will be hosting an event for University of Houston Sororities. Planning this event has taken lot of time and great planning techniques. Let me tell you what I keep in my tote bag to help me remember our techniques for the planning and programming of this event. The tote bag represents the shopping bag for Wish Boutique. What goes in it is what makes the event successful.
First step to planning and programming is to define the problem or opportunity. Wish has the opportunity to hold an event at their store for sororities. The events and activities that will be going on at Wish will provide them with the chance to sell more clothes and make more money. That is what the wallet in my tote bag represents. Many companies and organizations find opportunities to make money whether it's for them or for charity. When they have that chance, more than likely they will take.
The second step is the situational analysis. I carry a small agenda in my tote bag to remind me of what we plan to do for Wish Boutique. An agenda consist of a plan just like the situational analysis. You always have to have one!
The third step is to program the goal. My mirror in my bag is what represents the goal. When people look in the mirror sometimes they may set goals for themselves based on what they see. When Wish Boutique looks in the mirror they see a successful clothing store that can be improved. They set a goal for themselves to increase awareness of the store among UH student population by presenting this event to sorority members.
The fourth step is to create the strategy. My phone in my bag represents a very important part of our strategy. We need to reach out to the sororities and promote and advertise the event. We will be using a lot of social media for this. This will involve twittering, posting the event on Facebook and most of all communicating with presidents and leaders of these organizations. All of these strategies can be done from a little thing I like to call my phone. Don't you just love technology?
The fifth step is to decide on the target publics and objectives. This is where my I.D. comes in. The I.D. represents demographics which is what we needed to look at to decide our target audience. An I.D. has everything on it from race to height to age. In your bag you will also need a spare tape measurer. This tape measurer represents the objectives. All objectives must be measurable. The tape measurer in your bag will remind you of that every time! Keep it handy!
Live*Laugh"Love*Learn
Wish Boutique will be hosting an event for University of Houston Sororities. Planning this event has taken lot of time and great planning techniques. Let me tell you what I keep in my tote bag to help me remember our techniques for the planning and programming of this event. The tote bag represents the shopping bag for Wish Boutique. What goes in it is what makes the event successful.
First step to planning and programming is to define the problem or opportunity. Wish has the opportunity to hold an event at their store for sororities. The events and activities that will be going on at Wish will provide them with the chance to sell more clothes and make more money. That is what the wallet in my tote bag represents. Many companies and organizations find opportunities to make money whether it's for them or for charity. When they have that chance, more than likely they will take.
The second step is the situational analysis. I carry a small agenda in my tote bag to remind me of what we plan to do for Wish Boutique. An agenda consist of a plan just like the situational analysis. You always have to have one!
The third step is to program the goal. My mirror in my bag is what represents the goal. When people look in the mirror sometimes they may set goals for themselves based on what they see. When Wish Boutique looks in the mirror they see a successful clothing store that can be improved. They set a goal for themselves to increase awareness of the store among UH student population by presenting this event to sorority members.
The fourth step is to create the strategy. My phone in my bag represents a very important part of our strategy. We need to reach out to the sororities and promote and advertise the event. We will be using a lot of social media for this. This will involve twittering, posting the event on Facebook and most of all communicating with presidents and leaders of these organizations. All of these strategies can be done from a little thing I like to call my phone. Don't you just love technology?
The fifth step is to decide on the target publics and objectives. This is where my I.D. comes in. The I.D. represents demographics which is what we needed to look at to decide our target audience. An I.D. has everything on it from race to height to age. In your bag you will also need a spare tape measurer. This tape measurer represents the objectives. All objectives must be measurable. The tape measurer in your bag will remind you of that every time! Keep it handy!
Live*Laugh"Love*Learn
Are You Meant To Be An Event Planner?
I am reading a book called "How to Start a Home-Based Event Planning Business" and at the beginning there is a self assessment to see if Event Planning is really the field you are supposed to be in.
1. What would you rather do... watch a play or be in one?
2. One a rainy day... redecorate your room or read a book?
3. Drive or be driven?
4. Plan the menu for holidays or let your sister bring the food?
5. Host a party or attend one?
6. Do masquerade parties frustrate you?
7. Can you juggle several tasks at one?
8. Do you enjoy solving problems?
I'm sure you can decide which answers mean you would fall in love with the industry. Let me know if you think this is something you would enjoy.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
1. What would you rather do... watch a play or be in one?
2. One a rainy day... redecorate your room or read a book?
3. Drive or be driven?
4. Plan the menu for holidays or let your sister bring the food?
5. Host a party or attend one?
6. Do masquerade parties frustrate you?
7. Can you juggle several tasks at one?
8. Do you enjoy solving problems?
I'm sure you can decide which answers mean you would fall in love with the industry. Let me know if you think this is something you would enjoy.
Live*Laugh*Love*Learn
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