7 signs you're a pro at planning events

As a teenager, arranging a slumber party or a friendly barbecue during the hot summer evenings felt pretty casual, relaxed and carefree – but not for you! You organised every party to the last detail! From printing out RSVP invites to hanging the party decorations with extra attention, you thought party-planning was your ultimate jam! Everybody thought you were being ‘bossy’ and ‘stressed out’, but to tell the truth; you were channelling your inner party animal towards a rare form of entrepreneurship!

Planning an event has its pros – you get to socialise and build your PR for further events! But inevitably, a ton of cons follow. From feeling ‘too tired’ to coming almost close to the ‘event-planning burnout’, every successful event planner faces the consequences of obsessively arranging everything in apple-pie order!

1. You Give Attention to Detail!

As a teenager, you enjoyed planning a party for your friends mainly because it seemed too easy! You’d always start with a checklist, mostly because you loved ticking them off before the event came closer! The sigh of relief that you earned seemed victorious – and you were sure enough to do it all over again! But your checklist included everything from the crucial details such as preparing invites and food to the little ones such as keeping a check of everybody’s preferred playlist!

You give attention to detail while planning your parties or events – even if it’s as exciting as a wedding or as dull and gloomy as a funeral. From creating an itinerary and becoming stressed out when your event sections don’t go as per your plan – you were born to be an event planner!

Each part of the event turns out breathtakingly on point – from the theme of the event to the display of napkins and arrangement of cutlery on the table – you’re your boss!

2. Communication is a Key Aspect!

Your events cannot carry themselves out! The second sign of a successful event planner is accepting that communication is critical and vital for your function to take place smoothly. Executing the first day of preparation to the last few minutes of the event, an event planner realises the necessity of interacting with the parties involved. From interacting with the brand sponsors and team of executives to holding numerous calls and arguments with the vendors and caterers – planning a smooth event depends on your communication skills.

Incorporate clarity as well as a slight edge of diplomacy in your verbal and written communication skills. In addition to relaying information to the involved contributing parties of your event, you must carry it out with comprehension and thorough planning.

3. You Know How to Solve Problems

Suppose you’re arranging an outdoor event in a tent without a canopy – but suddenly, it rains on your parade! Planning an event doesn’t mean that you need to have a bunch of safety pins to pin up the bride’s slightly sabotaged dress. What will you do when the musicians of your planned concert are stuck in traffic? Will you cancel the event or are you wise enough to keep a couple of garage bands as back-ups?

To solve problems at the given time, you have to plan ahead of any unforeseen circumstance. You’ll have to prepare a separate check-list for ‘emergencies’ so that you’re ready for any challenge that takes place at your event!

4. You’re Incredible at Negotiation and Bargaining

Weaselling around your end of the deal before finalising any decision is an essential requirement of a pro-event-planning business. In place of inflation and seasonal demands in Australia, many vendors are liable to increase the prices of their venues as well as spoil the quality of food! But, being in charge of an event catering Sydney business, you should be able to negotiate your terms and stabilise a temporary contract with confidence and bargaining skills.

You must understand the language of the vendors you’re doing business with so that you can give them a taste of your tactful ‘you’re-so-important-people’ skills!

5. Multi-tasking with Responsibility

You might forget to put the kettle of water on the stove for brewing your coffee during leisure, but there is no way that you succeed to do the same while at work! Your work is your priority – even if you have a team of executives with delegated tasks, your name always pops up during a crucial problem!

From handling logistics to closing the deals with authentic book-keeping records, you are born with practical multi-tasking skills that put others on your team to shame! Your team will not only look up to you in terms of management crises but will also come to you whenever they need mentoring in leadership qualities!

6. Budgeting and Logistics

Probably the most challenging chore out of all the others is to budget your expenses and time accordingly. Despite wanting to save and make a profit out of every event, there might be times when you fail to do so. But all in all, it is essential to understand the credibility of every dollar spent so that you can work on multiplying it in the future.

Your number one priority is to make each penny count so that you can show what you reaped with your investments. With time and progression, a pro event planner manages to juggle a variety of expenses and at the same time, keep a strong record of check and balance as well.

7. Your Creativity is overflowing!

Despite being called snobby and bossy, your guests raved about your organisational skills back when you were a mere teenager! With all the arbitrary planning you’ve done since then, your creativity has grown to a full-fledged open-house! Today, as you plan your hundredth event, you know how to deal with your clientele and execute a shindig that’s worth bowing down!

Another critical aspect of showcasing your creativity is to listen to your client’s ideas until you can brainstorm and execute them to completion. You believe in displaying passion, integrity and resilience whenever your imagination is at stake!

For you, staying calm in terms of adversity is the only rule of playing a full deck by chance – and you’re not going to let anyone deter your success while you’re at it! To be a dynamic role model and success in the event planning business, you must learn to ‘let go, impoverish, and improve’!

Conclusion

If you’re starting and don’t know whether an adrenaline junkie like you should jump on the bandwagon of event-planning, then we have just the thing for you! We have discussed 7 prominent skills and signs of pro event planners below – so read and let us know where you stand!