Now where did I put that...

Does this look familar to anyone?  I know it does to me... I'm that kind of person who has six million things going on at once, like most of you.  My organization style, well it makes sense to me, but anyone else might as well try to deciepher hieroglyphics then figure out where I put things.  And I know I know, we're all too busy to go find that proper folder and filing cabinet, why not just throw it in the pile and we'll organize it later?  We add a few more papers.  Then oh look, its time to leave... I'll just get to organizing these papers tomorrow.  Tomorrow becomes next week.  And then before you know it we have a heap of papers, no idea where anything is and we need to find one paper in the proveriable hay stack.  Then we're about to tear our hair out because we are waisting time searching through a mountain of memos, emails, and chinese reciepts. 

Well, ladies and gents the secret to avoiding this mess is to keep up with it.  I know a real shocker right?  Well because this is one of those "easier said then done" type of things, i've got some tips for you (and me) to make our lives a little easier.  And believe me when your planning an event (nevermind two or three at once) being organized (mentally & physically) will help you save time and accomplish what you need to, without that weekly meltdown. 

1. Have a list of goals:  Really have a couple.  At the beginning of a project, make a to-do / goal list for that project.  Break the tasks down into manageable bits. (Ex; Hiring Entertainment can be broken into Brainstorm, Research, Get Quotes, Decide / Confirm, Pay).  This goal list should be seperated into weeks.  Then each day you should make a list of the objectives for that day from all your various projects, doing the most important first. 

           *Keep all your lists in the same notebook or planner all the time! They won't help if you can't

             Find them!

2.  Deal with a Paper Once:  This is a big one.  Here is where we avoid the clutter factor.  When you get a file, an email, memo etc don't parially handle it.  If you don't have time to complete it, put it aside until you do. 

3. Plan for daily issues: Schedule in an hour to handle those memos and emails that come in so they aren't sitting around and piling up.

4.  Group Similar tasks together:  You'll save time and avoid losing papers by doing things in bulk, (ex. answering all emails at the same time, addressing envelopes to dif. ppl etc)

5. Physically Organized:  Invest in Bins, folders, binders.  Everything should have a designated place! Some examples of categories to have; Specific events, contacts, "to be filed", "phone calls to make" "To be reviewed/ signed", Urgent, Long term projects.  Find what helps you stay organized.

* Keep in mind that this works for your computers too! Create Folders for specific tasks and areas of them.  Someone who has never been in your office should be able to go in and find whatever they are looking for, so keep it logical!

 * One tool I love is an accordian folder.  This lovely little thing keeps everything in one place, but with a seperate category for all the different aspects of it.  This little baby is a disorganized gals best friend.  And you can get it in various color / patterns at any business type store, walmart etc.

6.  Maintenence:  Set aside a few minutes each day to maintain your system.  This will help you catch your little slips when you throw that budget paper aside in frustration.  At the end or start of each day look at your to-do list, cross off what was accomplished and make the one for the next day while everything is fresh in your mind.

Or... You could always do it his way.  Whatever works for you friend.  Well I'm off for the day, stay dry!  And Stay Organized!  TTFN



Phi Sigma Sigma Battle of the Bands

Hey Everyone! 

So last night there was an awesome event that I wanted to tell you all about. This was the Phi Sigma Sigma Battle of the Bands.  Phi Sig is a sorority on the URI campus that I advise from the programming office, as well as being a proud member of.  The Battle is an annual event that I started when I was fundraising chair a few years back, and was taken over this year by the lovely Lauren Silverman. 

The event last night consisted of five competing bands, Alphadelic, Cougar Skates, Haze, Short Handed Goal, and Sidewinder, as well as a guest appearance by VMA nominated band Air Traffic Controller.  There were also smaller performances by Paul R, This is a Band, and a crowd favorite, Zack Tripp. The show was sponsored by many local business such as Sumoskinny and Static productions who contributed to the first place prize, 300.00 worth of studies time as well as other great items.  The show went off with only a few hitches here and there surrounding technical issues and managed to raise around 700.00 for the National Kidney Foundation. 

As I was reflecting on how fun this event is, and how successful it always is for this organization, I thought that it might be helpful for some of you to know the step-by-step procedure in planning a Battle of the Bands in case you ever decide to hold one.  So here are the basics!

1. Find a Location.  Preferably one with a stage, but not necessary.  Make sure it has enough outlets in the area you want the band to play, musicians have a lot of electronics.  Also if your in a very populated area, check on noise restrictions, you may need a permit.  Lastly, consider the size of the venue and if its big enough to hold the type of crowd that you expect. 

2.Pick a Date.  This should be a couple of months from when you start planning, to do one of these right takes a lot of planning! Check all your calendar and try to avoid large conflicting events.  Make sure the venue you picked is available that day and remember to book it.  (I have found that Thursday nights work well on a college campus, your area might be different though)

3. Start Looking for Musicians.  You can post fliers at places like guitar center, and local concert venues.  Ask around to see if your friends or people you work with know any good local acts.  Look on myspace and send out personal invitations to bands that have the sound your looking for.  You can hold auditions if you like, I have found that audition by demo is effective and less time consuming.  Make sure you know your bands well in advance of the show date, this allows you to market better. When you choose your bands, get their contact info and stay in consistent contact with them. 

4. Start looking for prizes and sponsors.  Approach businesses about providing prizes.  This is the big one.  The better prizes you have, the better bands with want to perform, and will want to get their fans there.  Music stores, and other types of business that work with the same crowd are usually willing to help a good cause and get their name out there.  Make sure you include your sponsors on any marketing, and thank them during the performance. 

5. Arrange sound / lighting.  You should find someone who has a P.A system, and knows how to use it.  A venue that provides these types of services is ideal, but if you couldn't find one, find a company that does.  Tell them you are having a live concert, and if your not familiar with the techie stuff they should be. 

6.Find Judges. You should do this early in the game to make sure that they have time to put it on their schedule.  Fellow musicians, music appreciators and teachers, and individuals from sponsoring businesses are always good options.  If you have someone in your org. or the group that your raising money for that is really great too.  Try to find people who know music and like live shows, but its not necessary.  You could place a volunteer who knows more with them to answer questions if you need to. 

7. Equipment.  Once you know your bands, make sure that you find out what their equipment needs are.  Most bands expect the venue to provide a P.A, and the microphones at the least.  Also something to watch out for is let them know if the hookup for the P.A is not on the stage, because then they might need longer instrument cables than they are used to. 



8. Market. Market.  Market.  This is the biggest thing with any event.  Get the word out.  Facebook and other social media are great tools.  Get adds in local papers, especially ones geared towards the arts.  See if you can get local radio stations to mention it. Fliers everywhere your target audience might see it. The biggest thing here is your bands.  Require them to sell tickets.  Factor it into your rubric in some way.  Set a minimum that if they don't sell they can't compete.  They need to get their fans there.  That's the point. 


9. Little Details. 

Remember to make a rubric for your judges, include all the categories you think they should be judged on.  If you don't feel comfortable creating one, you can find one online or have a music savvy friend make one for you. 

Staffing. These events take a lot of people to pull off.  You need people at the door to collect money / tickets, someone with the judges, someone to do the tech (if you didn't hire someone) people for set up / break down, you need a host, you might need security, if your using curtains you need someone to open and close them, someone should be timing the bands and cuing them when they have a few minutes left, and when their time is up, and you need someone to "stage-manage" this is the person that makes sure all of the performers and people are where they need to be at any given moment.

Time Sheets:  Decide how long you want to give each band, and create a timeline of how the night should progress.  Remember to schedule in time for mistakes, because especially with events like this, it happens.  Have things available to fill time if needed. (A host with jokes, or fun facts, an mp3 player that can be hooked into the system between bands, acoustic performers that don't need set up who can fill time) 

 *One thing I like to do with this is to have acoustic performers playing, that are not a part of the competition, while the competing bands are setting up.  This keeps the crowd engaged and minimizes down time.*

Another important thing with regards to time is to have your bands show up at least 2 hours before their scheduled set if possible.  This means that they have time to run late, (don't tell them that though) and if the show is running early, or something happens to one of the other bands, then the next band should already be there to go on.  Make sure you have a check in table or sign in sheet for them. 

Another tip for keeping on schedule is to stay ahead.  Your first band should be set up before the show starts.  Your second band should be "on deck".  This means that they are waiting near the entrance to the stage with their equipment brought closer if it was at the back of the room or in another room. This pattern should continue all night, when band three is on stage, band four is waiting, ready to go. 

Room Setup:  For an event like this you mostly went a clear floor for people to stand, dance, and mosh.  You will want some chairs lining the room in case people need to sit, and you may want to have some tables on hand for bands to sell their merchandise.  You should also have a separate area (whether another room or just an area off to the side) for bands to keep their equipment.  You should map out a space for each individual band, it will help them and let you know who is there. 

During:  Providing food and drinks for your bands and performers is a nice gesture that usually makes people happy.  Water should absolutely be provided for performers, however.  Raffles are nice if you have things to raffle off. Or do a 50 /50. 

Take lots of pictures (maybe have a volunteer do this) and have fun! As the person running the event you should be on hand to handle any problems, but should not get caught up in a specific task. 


 These are the big steps to planning a Battle of the Bands.  Every event is different, so you might find some other things that work for you.  You may want to have a theme, or some other fun idea.  Make it your own!  Just stay organized and remember to have your bases covered.

TGIF and TTFN!

Grammatically Speaking...

Hey all! How ya doing? I'm good, getting over some graduation drama but still looks like I'm good for may! What a relief!

Well, I've been thinking about our brainstorming discussions, and I think that we should take a quick step back.  Most of the ideas and tips that I have been posting for you, are for someone who already has a general idea of what they are planning.  This could be because they are required to do a certain type of event, or are just so gun-ho about an idea that all they need is help refining. But really, a lot of us start with a blank slate.  We know we want to plan an event, but have no idea what kind. 

So today I want to go back and give a tried and true method of coming up with a skeleton outline, a place to use as a springing board for all the other lovely brainstorming that you are going to do to make your event amazing and one of a kind.   

All you need to know for this little tip, is some basic grammar.  Remember those six little questions that we were all taught to use, to think about stories.  Back to grade school we go... They were

Who, What, When, Where, Why, How

That last one always through me off... a random "H" word right?  Well anyways, as an event planner trying to figure out what you want to do, those questions are a great place to start.  We're just going to switch the order up a little for our purposes. 

Why? is going to come first.  So ask yourself, why are you planning an event at all?  What is your purpose?  Is it Fund-raising? Philanthropy? Recruitment? To Raise Awareness?  Is it bonding for your group? Or some good old fashion Fun? Once you know the answer to this question, you are more able to trim down the daunting number of options.  You will be more focused when trying to decide what type of event will help your organization. For example a group that is trying to raise money for a cause, might do better by selling something, such as a service (valentine card deliveries) whereas a walk for a cause might be better for raising awareness, as it can be done in public places.

Who? Is the next big question in the equation.  Who are you planning this for?  Does your organization represent certain values that need to be upheld?  A sorority for example can get away with doing a dance party, while a large non-profit might see that as unprofessional.  Another part of this question is who is your target audience?  If you are trying to raise money for a cause that affects the elderly it might be helpful to consider that when deciding what to do.  If you are trying to recruit young adults on the other hand, the type of events that are plausible for you will be very different.  This could very well be the most important question in deciding what type of event to do, make sure you know your target group well, and what would most interest them.

When? would come third.  This is the question in which you try to decide the best option in your calendar.  You could be working around an organizations busy schedule or your own.  You might decide to do something during a particular season, or holiday that could influence what type of event you plan.  Obviously a summer event eliminates the possibility for a snowman building contest.  So think about the time that is available to you, and what options are plausible, as well as upcoming holidays and cultural markers could help you focus your event.

The question of What? would come next, and then again later on.  What resources do you have available to you in order to make a successful event.  Do you have a budget?  How much money you can spend will put a limit on the types of events that you can do well.  Keep in mind that its better to hold a smaller, well done event, than try to do something to big for your budget.  But if you have people that you think would be willing to sponsor an event, they are resources as well.  If you have a low budget, think about what types of locations, performers, services, and supplies are available to you that are affordable or even free.  Another aspect of resources to consider is staff.  If you have a large volunteer force then you can do larger scale events, but a small event might not involve enough of your group.  For smaller organizations a large event might not be plausible to manage.  You can add these restrictions and resources to the mix to further refine what is possible for your organization. 

Where? is very closely linked to what in that it looks at what is available to you.  Specifically thinking about your location as a resource can help figure out some options too.  Are you near beaches, parks, or other locations that can make certain types of events possible?  Also, what trends are big in your area? Or what is something that isn't offered anywhere else around you?  A speed dating could be an awesome fundraiser, but not if four other locations already have them weekly. 

After you have thought about these things and come up with a list of ideas that work with your circumstances you can narrow that down.  Bring it to your group, have them vote on what they would like to do.  Having their support will make planning the event so much easier.  The other perspectives will also help, because while you may love an idea, it might not be the most appropriate for that specific time or group.  This is the second time What? comes up, what are you going to do?


When you have chosen an event is when your How? comes in.  This is the nitty gritty work of planning the actual event.  It involves the timeline, marketing strategies, budgeting, staffing, purchasing, and all the other fun details that we'll talk about later.

So I hope you found this helpful and remember next time your having trouble figuring out what type of event to do, remember your grammar  Why, Who, When, What, Where, What, and How.


Well I'm off for the day, have a good rest of the week and TTFN!

Brainstorming Again!

 Hey all!  Hope your week has been going well, the weather is finally getting warmer!  Well I'm back with some more brainstorming tips and strategies for you! Hopefully it will help you get your event off the ground and find some fun, exciting ideas!

 Listing: Take your topic or your general idea and you can list in three ways. Take each of these categories  and create a list of only one word items that apply to that list.
  
     1. On the general theme
     2.  On Specific areas of the theme (decorations, food, etc)
     3. Taking the items of the first two lists, come up with the opposites of those ideas

3 Perspectives: Use these prompts to approach your idea from different angles.

1.  Describe it:  What is your basic idea, whats interesting about it, what unique opportunities does it       present?  What are its most well known features?  What are its themes?
2. Trace it: What is the history of your subject? How has it changed over time? Why? What are the          significant events that have influenced your subject?
3.  Map it: What is your subject related to? What is it influenced by? How? What does it influence?          How? Who has a stake in your topic?  Why? How has your subject been approached by others?

Similes:

In this technique, complete the following sentence:
____________________ is/was/are/were like _____________________.

In the first blank put one of the terms or concepts your theme centers on. Then try to brainstorm as many answers as possible for the second blank, writing them down as you come up with them.
After you have produced a list of options, look over your ideas. What kinds of ideas come forward? What patterns or associations do you find?

Search For It!

When all else fails and you can't think of ideas or even a theme to start with, this is the technique for you.  Get a piece of paper, and a variety of resources.  Examples would be different types of magazines, textbooks, catalogues, brochures, even dictionaries and encyclopedias or a trip to the mall.  Flip through the pages, or walk through the stores and write down things that catch your eye.  Things that you think would be interesting, don't worry about plausibility at this point.  Going through different types of magazines and things that cover different topics (history, fashion, science, etc) will you give you a broader range to pull from.  These days you can also browse online and sites like stumble are awesome.  You'll be surprised at how much will spark your imagination.

The big thing to remember with brainstorming is to keep an open mind.  If brainstorming in a group make sure that everyone has the opportunity to speak, and that no idea is shot down or insulted.  This will stunt the creativity and prevent people from speaking out.  Creating an environment where people know their ideas will be valued is crucial to group brainstorming.   Time limits may help keep people on track, but other than that its just best to let the ideas flow unrestricted.

Hopefully some of these ideas will help you out of a rut it you get stuck.  I'm sure you have tons of great ideas for your events, you've just got to get them out!

Good luck and TTFN!

To the notepad!

Hey All! How's life? Cold I'm sure, but getting warmer...

Well, the work on the Senior Sendoff has really begun.  What is the Senior Sendoff? you may ask.  This is a program /one day festival that the Alumni Relations department at URI puts on every year to celebrate graduation with a few hundred seniors. The goal is to get them interested in the alumni programs.  The festival is usually themed with decorations, food, music, t-shirts and give-aways. This lovely little event happens to be my baby for the semester, from concept to completion.

Currently, brainstorming is the hot topic on the agenda. I sat there for a few days, staring at a blank notebook page, wondering what in the world should this event be?  What would seniors find interesting, entertaining? What could I work with easily?  When then I thought... What in the world....?  World... Around the world!  Cool idea right?  For graduating College, getting ready to go out into the real world, and URI's new thing is the think big, think global.  It works. The notebook is no longer blank, and that's a start. Now for the real note scrawling to begin.  What kind of food are we going to get?  Decorations?  How is it going to fit in the budget?  What should be put on the t-shirts? Pretty soon I have about six running documents full of random ideas, mostly ridiculous, the occasionally plausible, and some almost mundane.  But I have a hell of a lot to draw from now right?  I'm still working on it; I like to find a ton of ideas, and then narrow it down.  But how do you get to that point?

Well, Brainstorming for your event can be done in a bunch of different ways. The important thing to remember about this process is that anything goes.  No idea should be ignored, no matter how absurd it is, it could lead to something that is actually do able.

So some basic brainstorming techniques for you?

  Free Association:  I've already mentioned this one a little. Its what I used to come up with my theme of Around the World.  This is when you kind of just sit and think writing down whatever pops into your head.  Trying this in different settings is really effective because words or signs or other things that you might notice in different places could inspire totally different trains of thought.  This also works if you already have a basic idea like "Around the World"  Then you could do a more focused word association and think about whatever images come to mind in a particular category (food, decorations, games) etc with that theme.  You can go through and separate the lists later, right now you basically just want to capture the flood of ideas before they drizzle away or dry up.  Once you've done that, its good to put your paper aside for a day or so and then come back to it in a different place and different state of mind.  Keep the paper with you at all times though, you never know when an idea will bite!

Well that's all for tonight, but next time I'll be back with  more specific brainstorming techniques and tips to do individually and with groups.  TTFN!

So What is Event Planning Really?

Well, event planning is the entire process from start to finish that is necessary in order to have an event. If looked at a certain way, an event could be a puzzle, with various problems to solve, or a work of art, something beautifully created. It all depends on how you see your event.  Any event whether large, (your favorite bands concert, the MTV music awards, the Macy's day parade) or small (your schools car wash, a graduation party, an ultimate Frisbee tournament)  all have pretty much the same stages despite the differences in the details.  This means that pretty much anyone and everyone has planned an event, or will at some point in their lives. 

Now I just said that it involves the entire "process", and that's true enough.  An event is a process.  Some people seem to think that an event exists only on the day that it's scheduled for.  Those of you have planned something before know just how silly this is, and those of you who haven't, you'll find our very quickly. 

Any event first involves brainstorming; that messy period in which you throw all your ideas out on a piece of paper and try to figure out what the hell your doing.  Then you have to figure out how to make your scribbled out, diagram covered crumpled notepad paper turn into an event to go down in your friends (or bosses) history books.  This can be annoyingly difficult and fantastically confusing.  It can also be exciting, challenging, and fun.  There are people that you're supposed to work with, even though you'd rather do it all yourself, so communication skills are huge when doing this type of stuff.  Which means no, you can't throw that stapler at your assistant (or best friends) forehead.  I promise, it won't fix any problems.  Then there is the day of the event itself.  If you've done your job well, you shouldn't be too stressed, but you always need to be ready for a last minute catastrophe.  If you've planned for all the possibilities you should be fine though. Easy right? And people wonder why event managers are head cases...  Anyway, even after the event the work isn't done.  There's always cleanup and thank you notes to send, and if you planned this for an organization then there is likely to be some paperwork and reflection necessary.  And always remember to celebrate a successful event. 

So like I said, theres a lot more to it then people realize.  One of the often heard lines that new people in my office get is "You'll find out quick that it's not just party planning in here..."  But even if it was just party planning, doesn't that sound like a lot of work to you?  That's what I thought too.  Well, now that I've given you the run down I hope your not scared away, its really alot of fun once you get through the idea of it all.  Believe me when I say its worth it in the end.  Well ttfn and see you soon!