Quote of the day

If you dream it, you can do it.
W.Disney

Event Tip of the Day

Bridging two families.

This tip is about making your wedding more than just a great party, it is about making it an experience.

One thing I really wanted to do was create a feeling that everyone how attend our wedding was in some way part of our wedding not just a guest.  One of the fun and meaningful ways of doing that is to add family photographs to your escort card table and/or gift table. I asked my mother-in-law for her wedding picture and my sister-in-law’s wedding picture, as well as my own parents pictures and some of our friends wedding pictures so that when guest walked in they got to see all the past weddings in our new family.  We got lucky that year because there were a lot of friends getting married and we happen to be the last wedding for that season.  So we were able to also add the wedding pictures of all the couples that got married that year to the table.

The one thing everyone kept saying was, it made finding their name a bit more of an experience and so moving to walk in and see their wedding pictures at our wedding.  Remember weddings are about building a new family and when you really allow people  to be a part of that bridge, it make it a stronger and beautiful foundation.  Plus how much fun is it while you are taking pictures to give people a chance to talk and reminisce about their own wedding. They may not even notice the time.

For more tips on planning events contact us at events@planning101.com

Quote of the Day…

Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe. Voltaire

Sales Tip of the Week

Growing too Fast…

The other day a friend said to me they were afraid of growing too fast because he was afraid of attracting too many clients, if only we all had that problem, right?  This got me thinking, is my friend afraid of success or is this a really concern?  The answer is a bit of both.  It is a real issue, when you are feeling you have too much on your plate and not enough infrastructure to support growth.  The fear comes because the company does not yet have the systems in place it needs  to really grow the way he would like.

In order to solve this issue, you need to first manage your time.  Time Management is the key to success, once you have that, you will be able to really get in and build your infrastructure. The next thing you need is a good CRM  (Customer Relationship Management) tool.  This will help you manage your client/customer information and give you quick access to your customers’ needs. There are a lot of good ones out there, a very cool new and easy one is Batchbook it works with facebook and gmail.

Finally, you need to realize you can handle growth because you are in control. You and you only will decide the number of clients/customers you get. More importantly, there is nothing wrong with putting people on a waiting list.  Just keep in touch with them via email or having webinars until you are ready to take them on.  Don’t let fear limit you; with a bit of time management and creative thinking you can grow at your own pace.

Marketing Tip of the Day

10 Secrets of a Great Presenter.

What makes Steve Jobs, Randy Pausch and Ellen DeGeneres great presenters?

They are inspirational, witty, purposeful and passionate about what they are presenting.  While Ellen’s speeches are humorous, she also weaves in important lessons from her life. Randy reminds us of the importance of living true to our dreams and pursuing them. That life isn’t about how long we live, but about how we live. As for Steve, I think it’s best for him to say it in his own words… “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

His point is clear your time is limited make it count. Now here are the ten secrets that will help you make it count.

1. Be honest– While you are attempting to present to a group your goal is gain trust, it rarely works, if you are not trusted. Trust is best created by being honest, if you are nervous its okay to say so, people will help you. Keep in mind that people will forgive many things when you are honest.

2. Get Personal- People need to relate you as a speaker, its important to use examples that are personal

3. Listen- Not with just your ears but with your eyes and your body.  You can read the audience just by listening to them.

4. When you speak, know what you are talking about-  If you don’t possess subject matter expertise, few people will give you the time of day. Nothing kills a presentation faster then when the speaker doesn’t know anything about the topic they are speaking on. The whole point of having you as a presenter is to learn something from you, the subject matter expert.

5. Focus on the what; teaching something– People hate when a presentation turns into a sales pitch.  They came to learn, not get a sales pitch. if you present well, and they learn something from you,  they will buy.

6. Speak to the group as individuals- 10 people or 10,000 people in an auditorium they need to  feel as if you were speaking directly to each one of them as an individual.

7. The “Pirate of the Caribbean” code-  The pirate code is the code you live and die by, but in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean, they called it “more like guidelines”  That is what your Powerpoint is..a guideline. Do not live and die by Powerpoint!

8. Do not be afraid of mistakes– It happens, you are human. The audience will not get out pitchforks and burn you at the stake.

9. Be early- Don’t “come on time” for a presentation, get there early, so you can get set up and  get comfortable with the space.

10. Have fun-  If you have fun they will have fun.

Effective communication is an essential component of professional success, remember you are presenting your company, self or business to others, be inspirational, witty, purposeful and passionate.

-want to learn more?   Email us at marketing@planning101.com

Event Tip of the Day

How long should a children’s party be?

Three hours is an ideal timeline.

Why? It’s not too rushed, so the kids can have fun and some free time, yet not so long that you run out of things to do.

Below is a sample agenda for any kid’s party.

15-25 Minutes- Greet and meet with unstructured activities

30-45 Minutes- Organized games and activities

45-50 Minutes- Food and/or refreshments

20-40 Minutes- Additional organized games and activities ( this would include time for gift giving if it is that kind of party.)

15-20 Minutes- Free play and unstructured activities

What makes a great leader?

We would love to hear from you.

Quote of the day

“In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.”

Coco Chanel

Event Tip of the day

Break out sessions during Business meetings.

At break time guest will need to take the opportunity to stand and stretch. The refreshments need to be selected to keep energy and concentration high!

Stay away from sweet rolls, and bread products.

Try  the following for your break :

• Assorted Yogurt Cups
• Granola Bar
• Power Bar
• Trail Mix
• Fresh Fruit

These items are not as expensive as you might thing and will help the group work through the day!

Hello world!

We started this blog to help people get inspired to manage their own careers. Our goal is to provide you with helpful strategies that will get you to the next level.  If you have an idea for blog contact us.

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