Planning an event can be so stressful!
It’s not something most of us do every day, or even every year.
Each situation comes with so many different variables and so many details to pull together, it’s nearly impossible to keep track of it all!
Today, I’ve got you covered. Here’s how to plan any event.
Seriously, any event.
From birthdays, to showers, to memorials, to open houses, these are the steps to pulling together your plan!
THE BASICS
Resist the temptation to jump right into all the exciting parts and spend some time creating the bones of your event.
The first and most important step is to ask yourself (or the guest of honour), what is the most important part of this event? This might be spending time with family, having a rocking dance floor, having great photos, or anything else that matters to you! This is what you will focus your time and money on creating.
After this, you can start choosing the other major pieces of your event. Go through them in this order:
- Your budget
- Your guest list
- Your theme
- Your venue
- Your date & time
From here, you can start filling in the fun parts!
THE DESIGN
I now recommend spending a few evenings scrolling through Pinterest and saving any idea that catches your eye. Keep a lookout for ideas about invitations, decorations, activities, food, and gifts. Focus specifically on the aspect that you’ve identified as most important to you.
Once you’ve got loads of ideas, narrow down your board to the ones you’ll actually want to use. Choose a colour palette to work with and now you’ve got your starting point for all the other decisions you’ll need to make.
When you’re choosing which ideas you’ll go with, look for ones with low cost or effort and big impact. Steer clear of never ending DIY projects that will consume your life. When you do decide to splurge on something, with either your time or your money, make sure it’s something that lines up with that most important thing you chose.
During this stage, you’ll also send out invitations. Notice that we have all the information needed for an invite after the first stage? So no matter what your planning timeline is, whether you’ve got a year or a day, you can send those out at the appropriate time.
The basic rule for timing out your invitations is to send them with enough time for people to make their travel plans. If you’re inviting people from overseas, give them several months notice. If you’re inviting local guests, a week or two is usually fine. Obviously if your event falls on a long weekend or major holiday, give extra notice as well.
THE LOGISTICS
I love this part! I know I’m possibly the only one, but pulling all the abstract pieces together into a plan makes me so satisfied.
Now you’ll want to write out how the day will go. Include any set times for access to the venue, deliveries, and when guests are arriving. Plan an order of service, or an outline of how you’d like the event to unfold.
Make a list of things that need to be prepared ahead of time. If you’re not hosting it at home, make another list of things you need to pack up and bring along so nothing is forgotten.
Collect your RSVPs and make sure you’ve accounted for the right number of guests.
Finally, prepare any thank you notes, gifts, or favours you’ll need.
To keep you organised, I’ve put together a free event planning worksheet! You can use it for any event you’re planning, and it will walk you through these steps in order.
