Happy Holidays, everyone!

I hope you had a great Christmas surrounded by friends and family like I did! 🙂

As we all know, this season is all about parties and events and as I promised in this post, I am going to share a few tips and tricks I’ve learned over the past few years of organizing and working in events. Just so you know, event organizing is not my main source of income but of course, I do it every once in a while when I get the chance to.

I was recently asked to help work on the Great Cebu Closet Sale last November 29- 30 at The Marco Polo hotel. During this event, we aimed to sell as many branded pre- loved clothes as we could in order to raise enough money to buy equipment for the Cebu City Medical Center which is currently under construction.

It was a very successful event and even though there was so much work put into it, I enjoyed every single second of it because I was surrounded by amazing people and clothes, at the same time!

I started working on events when I was in my third year in college. Although I had worked on a few smaller events in high school and earlier years in college, I got my big break back while I was a Junior studying nursing. Since then, I’ve been able to work for other prestigious event organizers in the city and organize a few on my own which you can see here: [PORTFOLIO]

I’m not an organizing extraordinaire but I’ve picked up a few lessons which I think would be helpful for anyone when planning small parties or gatherings and eventually, bigger things!

[ 1 ] BRAINSTORM

Pre- planning is always the most important part of anything. During this phase you get the chance to practice your creativity and find out the basics that you will be needing. Mostly this consists of:

THEME of your party:

NUMBER of people/ WHO to invite:

VENUE of event:

THINGS NEEDED:

BUDGET:

[2] CANVAS

 I usually find this the most tiring but most useful part in the end. This is when you start canvassing the things you need for the party like the venue which is in line with your budget, the cheapest materials (whether it be tables, chairs, sound systems, balloons, hosts, etc.) and whatever else you have on your list.

It’s always a good thing to keep a directory of all the resources you’ve collected because trust me, it will come in handy one day!

[3] VERIFY & HAVE A BACK UP PLAN

Sometimes things go down the drain and sh*t happens so I find it best to double check, verify & secure everything I need and have proof of whatever transactions I’ve done just in case I might need it. This includes receipts, text messages, emails and etc. which might come in handy in cases of need. Then, there are times when you just can’t control certain circumstances and you are pushed to think of something else… and fast! I find this the hardest to compensate for but you’ve gotta do it anyways so for instances of parties, I find it best to have a back up plan at someone’s house or elsewhere just in case reservations don’t push through.

This is when your directory becomes useful.

[4] MAKE SURE TO HAVE FUN

I feel like I always involve this element whenever I give talks or when I’m trying to give tips on this blog. I just really think that you shouldn’t do anything unless you enjoy it [despite the stressful situations] so this means, planning and executing everything properly so that you don’t end up suffering in the end.

I hope these tips are useful and if you guys need any help, ideas or contacts, feel free to leave a message or contact me through my social media accounts!

Merry Christmas again! <3

xx,

Issa