There is a tool that I absolutely love when it comes to file sharing and that tool is Google Drive. Google drive requires a Gmail account, but it is well worth it. I love how easy it is to create a folder for all my stuff and to share it with other people. I thought this that I would share the benefits of Google Drive for those that don't use it already.
Confessions of an Event Planner
I have a story to share, and it's a confession. A revealing and embarrassing moment I had one day while running an event that I managed to weave together ever so delicately. It was very unexpected, yet done out of necessity! Then I want to hear from you about your event confession. No story is too small! You can either leave your story in the comments or email me at eventssimplifieddr@gmail.com. You can also choose to remain anonymous. I promise I won't judge!
Room Setups
When I venture out to find a conference space that will fit the needs of my various programs I talk with hotel sales staff a lot about whether or not we will fit in a room based on the preferred setup. I thought this would be a great opportunity to talk about a few of the different types of room setups, how they work within a space, and other things to consider within a room when choosing a location for your event.
Subscribe via email
Things just keep getting better. I'm so excited to be adding a daily blog e-mail straight to your inbox. I know that you may want to be reading Events Simplified every day, but sometimes you might forget that we're here. Now you can have the latest blog post delivered right to your inbox every morning. All you need to do is go to the subscribe page and enter your name and email. While you're there you can also subscribe to updates from our upcoming podcast. You can be the first to listen to the podcast when it airs on August 5th! Subscribe now!
Working a Room
I've talked about the importance of relationship building here on the blog before. The relationships that you build can certainly help you in many facets of your professional and personal life. However, these relationships don't happen overnight. These things take time and can be hard work. Working a room can seem intimidating, especially if you are introverted.
Podcast News!
I have some great news! My brother, Scott, and I are starting a podcast. Our podcast is called "Life As We Know It" and it will be posted right here on Events Simplified. We are working hard to bring you content about navigating life after college. It will have both personal and professional tips for people of all ages. It's a very new and exciting endeavor for us, but we can't wait to share it with you! We plan to launch our first episode on August 5th! Check back soon to hear our first episode on trying something new and cooking!
Bridal Bargain Hunting
Something new today - Our first ever guest blogger for Events Simplified. My dear friend, Brooke Bailey (soon to be Peters), is in the midst of planning her wedding for December. She also has a blog centered on "lifestyle for 20 somethings with a pro-diversity and female empowerment undertones woven in throughout." You can checkout her entire blog at Banned Brooke. One post that struck me was her Bridal Bargain Hunting post, which you can see in its original form by clicking the link above. I thought it was very appropriate for the blog here at Events Simplified and of course Brooke was gracious to let me re-post it below and I'm so grateful to her! I can't wait for your wedding in December!
Poll Question: How Often Do You Want to See Blog Posts?
Just a quick survey for those of you that follow my blog. I want to know how often you want me to blog. I'm currently blogging 5 days a week (usually Monday through Friday), and I love doing it. Obviously, there is plenty to talk about, and I'm sure it's useful and interesting. But, would you prefer to hear from me less often? Or more? Take the quick anonymous survey below!
Automatic Email Expiration
I received an interesting e-mail last week from a faculty member in phase retirement. Michael had taken a vacation for two weeks after announcing his phase retirement and upon his return he was inundated with a ton of emails, many of which were meaningless because the event announcement had past. While this was annoying to him, he had a solution!
The Perfect Surprise
Over the weekend, Jerry, Gardner, and I attended a surprise party for Jerry's best friend, Marcus. The most difficult part of a surprise party is keeping it a surprise. I'm usually terrible at keeping surprise parties a surprise. I always manage to forget that the person doesn't know about the party. Lucky for me, we don't see Marcus that much, so there was less opportunity to spoil the surprise. It was worth it!
Tips for Picking Your Menu
I talked yesterday about what can happen when your food selection doesn't match your audience. You can review the post here. In a nutshell, we had a group of people visit the School and served them a breakfast that the vast majority couldn't eat. Here are some tips about picking a menu that suits your audience.
Food Selection and Audience
I've been running a program here at the School of Government this week for new lawyers called Defender Trial School. We have 20 public defenders and 10 private lawyers that do appointed work honing their trial skills through plenary sessions and small workshop groups. Yesterday, they had an opportunity to practice voir dire, which is the term for interviewing potential jurors. We rounded up about 24 people to be mock jurors for the program and provided them a breakfast, but we learned a little something about our jurors yesterday when it comes to food.
Event Tool of the Week: Doodle
Everyone has their own go-to tools in the event industry that makes life easier. I've heard great things about Evernote, a free app that organizes just about anything you want. Of course, you saw my wall calendar, which keeps me organized. One tool that I like to use when scheduling meetings among more than 4 people is Doodle. Someone in our IT department used it when I first started at UNC a few years ago and I loved the simplicity of it.
To E-mail or Not to E-mail... That is the Question!
So I am in the beginning stages of planning Gardner's first birthday! Side note, where has the last year gone? Alas, here I am though, coming up with a theme, putting the guest list together, and going to my Pinterest board for the latest and greatest creative ideas for one-year-old birthday parties. I have decided to do electronic invitations through Punchbowl, one of the many sites with adorable electronic invitations. But all this planning got me thinking about the event industry (of course). Are electronic invitations the way of the future? Here I'm going to explore the pros and cons and when it is appropriate to do e-vites over paper.
A NYC Ticker-Tape Parade
The US Women's National Team were honored with a ticker-tape parade in New York City on Friday. Their triumphant win during the Women's World Cup Final against Japan earned them the opportunity to make history yet again. Not only are the US Women the only team in the world to win 3 World Cups, but this is also the first time that a women's team has ever been honored on the Canyon of Heroes, along Broadway.