Running a Great Event

Many of you, I am sure, are unaware that I was an events organiser for quite a few years. I have since branched off and moved into a different industry but it is truly remarkable how many people out there think they can run an event and simply can not. While I can't say that my way of organising events is the only way, I can say that there are a few simple rules that should be followed to ensure a great event. With my pending nuptials, I can honestly say that I am truly glad to have the background I have to ensure that my wedding day is the happy occasion it is meant to be.

Rule 1 - Budget

While having a budget is a must, many people do not include all the elements of their event in their budget and others simply do not have a budget. If you are planning on making a living from your events abilities, ensure that your budgeting is great. Whether you are planning an event for yourself or for a client, a good budget will help avoid any nasty surprises after the event. Each event is different so I would suggest that while you are getting the hang of budgeting, run through the event from start to finish. Consider what you would like to give your guests on arrival and not the gifts but what about tables to display those gifts. Consider your catering, not just for the main meal but before it. Things like welcome drinks etc.

Rule 2 - Surround yourself with great suppliers

You are only as good as your weakest supplier. Remember the time your new furniture arrived late? Who were you angry with? The delivery company or the company you ordered that furniture from? If you were mi, probably both, but at the end of the day, you probably didn't order anything from that furniture store again. On the other hand, the company that ensured your items arrived on time and in good condition, left you with a smile on your face and you probably still have a great relationship with them. Now remember, you will not be doing everything in-house so once you have have found that great delivery guy or the fantastic florist, look after them. They will always do a good job for you, and your clients, if you provide them with the right information and pay them on time. always give them a proper brief of what is required from them to avoid any confusion down the line

Rule 3 - Plan and Prepare

You can never be too prepared. 90% of your work is done before the day. Once you have gone over the entire and you think you have everything ready, do it again. There is bound to be something you have missed or something you can add to the event to ensure it runs smoothly. In the planning phase, speak to your team and/or your suppliers to double and triple-check that you haven't missed anything.

Rule 4 - Work Hard

While I know this doesn't really apply if you are doing your own event because it is a given that you put in as much effort as you can into the event. If, however, events are or will be your vocation, ensure you get your attitude to hard work right. There will be times when you will have to carry heavy boxes of brochures up three flights of stairs. I have personally given myself more than one carpet burn going around on my hands and knees putting chair covers on 100 chairs. It's the name of the game and the effort you put in will show.

Rule 5 - Attention to Detail

While I am sure you are all rolling your eyes at this one but I can not stress the importance of paying attention to the little details of your event. The details are what make the difference between any old event and a fantastic one. Something to look at would be, are all the items in your gift pack packed in a uniform way? It may sound silly but if someone can open one gift pack and it looks identical to the next and so on, this will impress them. I know I have been so specific about things that I have gone around to each of my tables ensuring the knife blades in the place setting are all facing the same way. Pedantic, I know.

Well, those are my 5 Golden Rules of Events. I am glad I could impart some wisdom on this lovely day and I hope it helps all you rocking event managers out there!

Fitness Freak or Sucker for Punishment?

So, I have been studying and working extremely hard recently (I still am really) and my mom convinced mi that it would a good idea to take part in a 10km 'walk'. My mom is completely nuts for running, she has done a number of Comrades Marathons and has a ton of medals from other races. While I certainly give her kudos for her unbelievable drive to get up at the crack of dawn and run around the block numerous times, it isn't really my bag. After a bad cross country experience in primary school, I pretty much gave up on running and focused on hockey and swimming instead. Of course, once high school was over, so was any attempt at being fit. I keep meaning to do something 'exercisey' but now that my mom had suggested this walk, I thought it would be a good idea. My sister was going, so we could keep each other company, and I was going to get a medal to start my own little collection (if I finished that is!).

At 06h30 on Sunday morning, my sister picked mi up. Bleary-eyed and nowhere near bushy-tailed, I got my race number (3339, such a cool number). We queued up at the start and people-watched until the starting gun went off. People of all shapes and sizes (not to mention fashion-sense) lined up to give it their all. The beginning was quite nice, a bit crowded, but nice. Then my sister picked up the pace...

My first goal was to reach 3kms because that is where I was told there would be some liquid. It took forever to reach the 3km mark, I swear it was really 5kms but my new running shoes were holding up quite nicely (I haven't owned a pair of running shoes since high school and I was really glad I bought them), I couldn't imagine my docs or Circa's performing quite so well. So, by 3kms I realised three things; one, running shoes are not overrated, two, I am a poor judge of distance and three, after 3kms, Coca Cola (which I don't really drink) is just delish!

There was no loitering at the 3km mark. Oh no, you keep moving... uphill!! That's another thing, there were a lot of uphills! In fact it felt like entire course was uphill. My mom told mi the grading of this particular walk was pretty easy (a 2 I think it was). I be honest, I don't think my poor out of shape body could have handled anything worse than ultra-easy. We kept powering on and, with my interest in property, I couldn't help but start looking at the lovely houses of Houghton.

6kms came and went, more coke and water to keep my body going. My sister and I then began counting down, we were past halfway - hooray, the medal was in my sights now. By the time we reached 8kms, I was ready to stop. Gees, I thought there was no way I would feel so knackered, but then 9kms came. Phew! If have learnt anything from The Biggest Loser (yes, I watch just about every reality show there is) is that you need to find your limit and push through it. Well, if I thought 8kms was my limit, I was wrong! 9kms really kicked my butt. But, reaching 9kms did give mi hope that I could push through to the 10km mark. Our conversation that was keeping us going was pretty much laid to rest at 6kms and sister and I trundled into the sports ground (and the final few hundred metres). After a few more attempts at jogging to the end, we had made it! 10kms in 1 hour 44 minutes we had done it! Medal in hand and blister under foot (I don't know if I can blame my shoes for that or if I just walk funny) I headed towards my final helping of coke.

All in all, despite not being able to walk like a human being for three days, I would definitely say the walk was worth it (and I even got a little bit of a tan!). After completing the walk my mom thrust an entry form into my hands for the next 10km walk, this Sunday. I can only guess it will be a little bit easier, I hope!

Friday the 13th

How could I let this day come and go without a special post?

Some people are secretly superstitious about Friday the 13th. Generally people don't do much and are extremely quiet, which means my days are quiet. That being said, I have been extremely busy. Hmmm, maybe people aren't aware of the date... or even a good injection of fear to bring the quiet back?

Anyway, I just wanted to share some little known facts about Friday the 13th (and the number 13 in general):

- Did you know the fear of Friday the 13th is known as friggatriskaidekaphobia. There are a number of other names for it but I have reached my daily limit of typing complicated words (i.e. one per day)
- I read a while back, in some Astrology book, that depending on the year, Friday the 13th's are either lucky, unlucky or neutral. I forget how to work it out.... STML (short term memory loss), not a good thing.
- For those with a darker side; there are 13 knots in a hangman's noose (I'm guessing this is only if he has done it right), a witch's coven generally has 13 members, a guillotine is meant to drop 13 feet and my personal favourite, Fidel Castro was born on the Friday the 13th of August, 1926

There are tons of other interesting facts out there but this is a just a short smattering of what I thought would be the most interesting...

My Fantasy Dinner Party

If you could have a dinner party with anyone, living or dead, who would it be? This is a question that I have seen quite bit over the past few years and have been giving it some thought (I don't know why).

Firstly, the numbers always vary from 5 - 10 people that you are allowed to invite, so I'll put my list somewhere in the middle. For the living, I would certainly choose Eminem and Marilyn Manson, simply because they created their careers on controversy and I would love to know what is coming next. They would probably give my next guest a run for his money!

My list is mainly made of the not so living. Let me start with Hitler. Now, before you say anything, think about it, wouldn't you want to know what kind of a person did the things he did? I have a heap of questions I would love to ask him to understand what goes on in a mind like his. Maybe it's the curious cat in mi but I'd love to understand more.

Now, for the less controversial, Einstein and Newton are definitely on my list! What great minds they had, I bet you, even today, they would be innovators and legends. Theamount of things they achieved in their lifetime is countless and inspiring. Hmmm, maybe they could help mi with my Calculus or Biochemistry...

What is a fantasy dinner party without Kurt Cobain? I would have to ask him why he felt so despondent (if he did indeed write that erm, suicide note) with a beautiful baby girl around? And I would definitely settle the one burning question everyone has for him too.

And before you think I left the girls out of this, Lori Petty and Sylvia Plath would be the last of my invitees. These two awesome personalities would complete my fantasy dinner table.

Of course, fiance would have to be there to act as witness for getting these guys all around one table and to help mi clean up, something tells mi there will be quite a few dishes!!

I wonder if the rules will allow mi to add Pauly Shore and Shakespeare to that list?

I suppose the more important question would be, I wonder what meal would satisfy all of my guests? Hmmm...