Great parties go through the meticulous planning of a good Party host. Most parties fail not because of the guests, but because the strategies and techniques used by the host to make the Party successful do not go according to plan, which sparks the need for great Party planning. If you’re hosting a party and you want to make your party successful, here are some ways to make yourself the talk of the party scene.

Have Everything Planned in Advance

Remember that no successful party takes place spontaneously, and even the most random party needs the barest minimum of planning. You need to plot the course of your party, from the venue down to the food that will be served. You can keep a small notebook where you could keep your plans handy. Your plans can be as detailed as you want them, but if you’re an inexperienced party host, you can always make do with a rough list outlining the things you need for the party.

Invite the Right Guests

Guest work is almost always guesswork, and you may end up inviting people who do not like each other. If you’re a beginner, you can start by inviting friends and friends of friends to a small party at your home, or a fairly small venue. For larger gatherings, you may need to keep people with different interests or preferences separated so that they do not offend each other’s sensibilities. For children’s parties, you may need additional help to keep the kids from getting rowdy or from hurting themselves during games.

Exceed their Expectations

While you can’t please everybody and you’re bound to have at least one person leaving your party disappointed, your goal is to make sure that everyone else enjoys their time for your party. While most of your guests will have a good idea of what to expect from your party, it still pays to exceed their expectations. Try to have something up your sleeve like a special gift, token giveaways, or even a live band that plays your guests’ favorite music. You may also try to change venues, experiment with different foods, or even invite a special guest performer to liven up the party.

Hold a Lot of Parties

The best way for you to be a good party host is to hold as many parties as you can. Experiment with the various kinds of parties that are available to you. While your goal is not to be an expert party planner, your skills and talents may be useful for people that may need a hand for parties and other events. Even simple parties and gatherings can help sharpen your party planning skills. Don’t let opportunities to plan and hold parties pass you by.

While you don’t need to micro-manage or deal with every part of your party like your life depended on it, party planning is the secret of a good host and a great party. With these tips, you can begin to host some of the most awesome, memorable parties that your friends will talk about for years to come.

-By: George Faulkner

If you want the best party planning information then visit my website on http://www.partyplanningwebsite.info/ Before you plan your party or event.

Remember go to http://www.partyplanningwebsite.info/ to get everything you need to plan ANY party

Easy Halloween Party Planning Ideas…you won’t have any nightmares trying to plan your Halloween Party when you read our Halloween Party planning guide. It will be sweet dreams all the way.

It can get rather hectic when you are planning a party, but we have some great party tips and ideas for you, so don’t worry. Everything is going to work out just fine. You will learn the steps of party planning and you will find lists of the party supplies you will need with a time table to tell you when you should do them. Our guide will keep you organized and that’s half the battle.

Pick your party theme, pick the time and date of your event and finally choose a location to have your party. You will find no nonsense party food ideas and some easy recipes to help you prepare the meals. You can also find tips on food menu planning to make your party food choices easy.

Party decorating? Not a problem when you have a party supply list right in front of you. Check off what you have, and you can still see the party decorating items you still need.

Party activities…what’s a party without anything fun to do? Get some good craft project ideas, find some fun party games to keep your little guest busy and entertained the whole party through. There are even ideas on how to let the kids make their own party favors.

Halloween Party Planning Guide

Find a guide just for help planning Halloween parties. Whether it’s a movie party or a costume party, you will find all the planning help you need to have a fun, successful party. Find scary recipes, fun Halloween party supplies and lots of fun game suggestions. Everything you need to plan your party including a time frame, a shopping list and decorating ideas.

Other Party Guides

There are several party guides for you to choose from so whether you are celebrating a birthday. a princess, a Handy Manny party or a holiday, like Halloween or Christmas, you will find the right party guide for you. Everyone is going to think you are a professional party planner when you start coming up with tips and ideas for everyone!

Learn some party planning secrets too. Find out how some people always have a great party, while others have boring parties time after time. The secret is in the planning…knowing how to organize, knowing what supplies to get, what food to serve and what games to play. Get yours today!

-By: Jillian Gallo

Ms. Party Ideas is Jillian Gallo and she writes about fun party stuff! Find all the unique party ideas and cheap party supplies and get your free Halloween Party Planning Guide at http://www.partyideasparade.com/halloween-party-planner.html

Find out how to have the best Halloween party, costume party, Halloween snack recipe, fun Halloween games and learn how to plan and organize your party ideas. Go to http://www.partyideasparade.com/halloween-costumes.html to see our baby, kids, teens and adult costume ideas for this Halloween. October 31st is right around the corner…are you ready?

Wondering what to do for decorations with your next birthday Party? Searching for new birthday Party decoration ideas? Yes, you can hire a Party planner to do it all, but why not do it yourself and save a bundle! I can assure you that is a lot of fun and very satisfying to do your party decorations yourself. By following a few basics you can easily create a stunning party and a festive mood for you and your guests to enjoy.

These few tips on how to decorate a party will certainly get you started and initiate a few ideas for birthday party decorations:

Pay lots of attention to the party entrance

• Roll out the proverbial red carpet for your guests…. or any other color that matches the theme of the party.
• The entrance should be dramatic and festive, you need to get the guests in a party mood.
• You should impress your guests with the entrance to the party. Remember first impressions last!
• Create a bit of curiosity in your guests. Use sheer curtains or a beaded curtain over the entrance. On arrival the guests should only see a glimpse of what’s inside.
• Use decorations with bright colors, you want to grab the attention of the party guests.

Make use of a theme for the party

• Select a fitting theme for the birthday party.
• Choosing a theme that you know would be popular with the guests, for example a “Twilight Party” for older teenagers.
• Having a theme makes planning the decorations much easier as it calls for specific decorations.
• A theme will help to set the mood for the party.

Use balloons

• You can use balloons to turn your party into a spectacular experience! Most people can’t think “party” without thinking “balloon” as well.
• Balloons combined with streamers have been a favorite with decorators for a very long time.
• There are many ways to use balloons to create dramatic effects. The following have been used with great success in the past:
• Balloon drops a very special effect and they are popular with any age group!
• Huge balloon chandeliers can be hung from the ceiling.
• Place balloon columns at specific places like the corners of the dance floor.
• Put a colorful balloon banner over the entrance to the party.
• Use balloons to twist shapes like animals. Balloon Twisters became very popular, specially at parties for younger kids.

Do something special with the lights

• Select lighting to fit the type of the party you are having and use the lights to create the kind of atmosphere you need for the
• birthday party.
• Candles can be used to create something very special. Use candles for a soft and romantic atmosphere. Add a few glow-in-the-dark stars…
• Make use of special lighting like strobe lights or disco lights for something like a Rock and Roll Party.
• The old mirror ball still creates something exceptional.
• String lights work well at the entrance to a party.

Following this basic tips will help you to get started and maybe inspire some great ideas. The way you decorate the party is limited only by your imagination. Always keep in mind that the decor should fit the theme and mood you want to create.

If you are interested in parties or need more information about parties you are welcome to visit my blog at:

-By: Marizka Esterhuizen-Rudolph

http://www.slumber-party-invitations.com

Marizka Esterhuizen-Rudolph is a high school student and is interested in Slumber Parties and Sleepovers, Music, Movies, Hockey and Blogging. She loves animals and reading. After completing high school she plan to study Web and Graphical design.

Being a Party planner I have seen Party Favors get out of control and become way too much. When did Birthday Party Favors become so expensive and turn into gifts for each of your guests at the party? I find parents are spending a large portion of their party budget on party favors thinking they have to be over the top and so extravagant.

This is not true at all and it has now become expected from kids attending parties to go home with a large gift. I think a lot of this is due to the fact that parents have a really hard time with this part of the party planning. I see way to many scramble to figure out what they will do for the party favors at the last minute and with that always overspend. I know if you are reading this you totally agree and may even be guilty of doing this yourself.

Parents have to remember that Party Favors are only intended to be a small token of Thanks for coming to the party. With just a little imagination you can come up with a Unique Budget Friendly Party Favor that is useful instead of sending kids home with bags of candy and useless toys.

Here is a good rule of mine to follow it is called KISS – Keeping It Simple Saves. That is a great rule to follow when planning any party. Party Favors should be budgeted at anywhere from $1.00 – $5.00 per child give or take. This can be done with just a little imagination and creativity.A lot of times your can also save money by having your party activity double as your party favor. For Instance with a Stuff a Plush Birthday Party Theme the guests will stuff a plush and they get to take that home – so that will double as their favor – and that can be the same with many party activities. Also keep in mind when buying Party Favors if it is something you would not mind your child coming home from a party with. Is it something you will just end up tossing out or not allowing your child to eat?

I do know that kids look forward to the party favors so having nothing is really not the way to go. So I am going to share with your some ideas and some of my favorites I like to use and the kids love.

For simple items all you need to do is make some Thank You Cards – small cut squares with a hole punch and some pretty ribbon to tie onto your favor. Add some funny sayings like for cookie favors – “Thank You for coming to my party is was SWEET of you” etc…

Cookie Favors – Bake some cookies and wrap them up add your Thank You Note and a Juice Box stick them in a Lunch Bag decorated by the Birthday Child for each Guest and you have a great favor the kids will love and enjoy after the party. Add a stick to the cookie and you made a cookie pop.

Water Bottles – You can buy these at your local store for less than $2.00. Take a permanent marker and write the child’s name on it – attach a healthy snack and you are good to go.

Jumpropes – Tie your Thank You note to each and that is all you need

Re-usable Take Home Party Cups – A lot of Party Supplies have great matching reusable cups that come with the straw and all. I love these and think they make the perfect party favor.

Beach Pail and Shovel – Customized with the child’s name on it and add a bottle of bubbles.

Cupcakes – Send them home with a cupcake just frosted and attach a small bag of sprinkles they can add and a juice box. You can even buy reusable cupcake holder that will hold an individual cupcake and the child can use that over and over again for school.

Theme Coloring Books – You can find coloring pages for almost any theme right on the internet. Find at least 10 pages for each book maybe some fun activities like crosswords and such and print them out. Make a custom cover and it can something like – “Thanks for adding color to my day, Now you add some to yours.” Attach some crayons and you are good.

My number one favorite party favor to give is the reusable cups – I usually attach and snack and add a few goodies to the inside of the cup like Stickers and Tattoos and a blow up punch ball (kids love those).

So parents we all need to work together and stop this expensive party favor gift giving and bring party favors back to what they should really be – a small Thank You.

-By: Nicole Bethel

To find more creative Budget Friendly Party Favor Ideas visit:
http://www.thepartyanimal.org/ChildrensBirthdayParties/

Brought to you by: Nicole Bethel also known as The Party Animal
http://www.thepartyanimal.org

It can be difficult for Mums and Dads to keep up with the busy social lives of their young charges once they get to school age.

Throwing a Party involves a great deal of planning – particularly if it’s a special one. We all remember those spontaneous parties of our youth where gatherings just seemed to erupt into a fantastic celebration with absolutely no organisation or forward planning… however, the chance was that those parties were simply fuelled with a good deal of cheap student alcohol and very little else! If you’re looking for something a little more sophisticated nowadays, then you really can’t skip the planning stage in order to get your Party supplies in order! It’s also the only way that you’ll be able to actually enjoy your own Party yourself too – without being properly prepared with the right party supplies you’re likely to otherwise spend the whole event racing around panicking about taking food out of the oven, pouring drinks, letting guests in and just generally ensuring that everyone’s having a great time!

The good news is you don’t have to stare blankly at a post-it note and expect the plans to formulate themselves! Rather you can make it easy by investing in party supplies such as a party planner. The party plans kit is a great alternative to endless bits of odd scribbled upon paper, and it looks far more stylish too, featuring a classic party photo image on the front with champagne and vol-au-vonts. Inside it contains various record cards where you can plan different aspects of the event. There is a pocket for putting business cards and RSVPs in, space for recipe and article clippings – perhaps for your outfit inspiration, a party theme design article or some ideas for cocktails. There’s also a place for planning things like the guest list, the party menu and drinks list and the party decorations. Other useful things inside include a pen, a band for keeping all the various articles and clippings in and tear-off pages. It measures about 17×24 centimetres and will be handy for your handbag whilst you’re out and about planning!

Once you’ve got your event set in your head – whether it be an engagement or wedding party, an anniversary or even something more quirky such as a Eurovision or World Cup Party, you can think about who you’d like to invite and your theme. This is where party supplies really come into their own – and they’ve come a long way in the past few years – particularly with the advent of online shopping. Nowadays you can obtain anything from functional supplies such as party hats, plates, cups and streamers – to more quirky party supplies such as favours and games for everyone to enjoy.

Of course if you’re holding a party for grown-ups, chances are there’ll be a fair amount of drink floating around – so have fun mixing some cocktails or maybe a pitcher of sangria if it’s an outdoor affair. Make sure there are some non alcoholic drinks and mixers available for the drivers or non-drinkers. Again, you can get great party supplies to help you out and create your own mini bar – things like mini umbrellas, sparkly drink mixers or straws – fun and kitsch little accessories to bring out the inner barman in all your guests!

You’ll also want to clear a space for your guests to have a dance after their drinks, and remember to clear away any breakable items first! Perhaps you could put trays of finger and buffet food around the impromptu dance floor, so that the guests can revive themselves with some food in between their partying! Good food for parties includes things like mini pizzas and sausage rolls, vegetable crudites with dips, little blinis with smoked salmon and cream cheese, crisps and maybe fruit kebabs with a small party chocolate fountain. Basically you want food that can be held in a napkin or paper plate, and which doesn’t need cutlery or a table to eat at – unless of course you are planning to hold a classy dinner party. If that’s what you’re going for, you can have fun choosing party supplies to decorate your room and table – small candles to set the mood and avoid harsh lighting, small confetti and sparkly stars or hearts to scatter over the table runner, perhaps some fresh flowers to scent the room – lilies are a great choice for a contemporary and smart look.

These are just some suggestions to get you started – and of course if your party is going to be for children, then you’re looking at more snack foods, entertainment and a large area for rushing about in!

Regardless of your party, have fun, sort out your party supplies nice and early, get people to help out as much as possible -and enjoy yourself!

-By: Jonathan A Smith

Written by John Smith co-founder of GettingPersonal.co.uk

GettingPersonal.co.uk are one of the UK’s leading on-line retailers of Gifts, personalised gifts, Birthday Gifts, Party Supplies and Gifts for all other occasions. Their website is packed with over 1,500 gifts for any special occasion.

For more go to [http://www.gettingpersonal.co.uk]

Since the release of the Twilight Saga many Twilighters have had some great Twilight Party Ideas. With the release of the movie this past November, and when the DVD is released, Twilight parties are going to be hot this year!

Twilight Party decorating ideas can be taken from the Twilight Novel, or any of the other books in the Saga. If you are planning a vampire Party this year, the perfect theme will be based on the 4 book Saga by Stephanie Meyer? This love story has sold over 40 million copies in over 37 countries.

You can start to think about your Twilight party ideas right now. You can have a movie viewing when the DVD comes out or you can have a different kind of Vampire Halloween Party. Life size stand ups of Bella and Edward will WOW everyone when they walk into your party. Imagine the surprise on their faces when they are greeted by Edward Cullen and Bella Swan. What a perfect beginning to your decorating. You can also find cut outs of James, Laurent and Victoria…those naughty, blood sucking, nomadic Vampires we met at the baseball game.

What do you mean Vegetarian Vampires?

Yes, the Cullen’s are vegetarians…but what that means in vampire lingo is they drink the blood of animals, not humans. Your Halloween or Twilight party can be planned with a twist…Vampires without fangs. So that means no bloody Count Dracula Vampire party this year. You can go sleek and stylish rather than bloody and scary, like the Vampire parties we are all familiar with. The Cullen’s are a rather sophisticated family and Alice, the family party planner, decorates with lots of style and taste. Of course, you could host a Halloween party where the old meets the new…and have fanged, blood drinking vamps along side the vegetarian Cullen Clan…just like in Breaking Dawn.

A great Vampire costume party prop is FX lenses. You know, those colored contact lenses that change your eye color. The Cullen’s eyes, and the rest of the Vampires in the series, change. When they are hungry, or thirsting for blood, their eyes are black. When they have hunted and their thirst is somewhat satisfied, their eyes are golden or topaz. A newborn Vampire or a human blood drinker (like the Volturi) will have red eyes. This gives you several options as to what color lenses you will get. These special effect lenses look great…some of them are almost hypnotic! Homemade Costumes will be easy to put together if you decide to “become” Edward or Bella. They wear what kids everywhere wear. Edward will require a little makeup work. His skin is very pale and his eyes are black or light brown. His skin also sparkles in the sun…so you might want to use that look.

A Twilight Party Need Twinkle Lights

Don’t I have Twinkle Lights? You might have some of the party supplies you need for your Twilight party ideas…Make sure you check your holiday decorations for lights and bulbs you can use. It’s nice to be able to save some money on decorations! If you recall, when Alice decorated for a party, she used roses and lots of twinkling lights. So, first on your party decorating list is…Twinkle Lights. I love the white ones, but you can also be bold and use red or black if you can find them. Using red and black is a very dramatic decorating scheme.

Red and Black Decorations For Your Twilight Party

You can get decorating ideas for your Edward and Bella Party right off the Twilight book covers…Twilight- This book has hands holding an apple against a black background. The second novel in the Saga, New Moon, has a Parrot Tulip in red and white. The third novel in the Saga, Eclipse, has a piece of red satin ribbon against a black background. The final Novel in the Saga, Breaking Dawn, has a white Chess Queen and a red Pawn against a black background. So it looks like the color scheme should be red, black and white. What an intense backdrop this color scheme will create for your party.

Take all the decorating ideas you can from Stephanie Meyers’ Saga. Think about a black table cloth with some white or red dishes. Make up silverware setting like you see in some restaurants. Wrap each place setting in a white napkin and secure it by tying a red satin ribbon around it. Try filling some glass cylinders with roses or see if you can order some red and white Parrot tulips from your local florist. Fill wine glasses (or some other small glass) with spray roses. These small roses are very delicate looking and open very nicely. I’m sure Alice Cullen would approve.

Use the Twilight Books as Decorations

The book covers are ideal to use as Twilight party decorations. Lay copies of them around the party room. After all, this party is based on what’s in them, and they do have those great covers. Use red satin ribbons, apples and even chess pieces to set the mood of the party. Do you have any red and black Christmas balls? Put them into a glass cylinder. They will look really great with the Twinkle Lights.

Imagine what an interesting and intimate feeling your party will have. Twinkle lights, red and black and of course, the Twilight Soundtrack music playing in the background. If you can, clear part of the room to make a dance floor and keep the music low so people can hear each other!

Party Food Time!

Get Pizza or serve sandwiches. I like to plan easy party menus. Of course, if you like to cook or cater…go for it. There are several food ideas you can take right from Twilight ….Bella made some quesadillas for Charlie, there’s the Fish Fry Billie Black brought and there are always Bella’s mushroom ravioli. Red Drinks are easy enough to find…fruit punch, or use a mix of red juice and seltzer to make a red punch.

Keep your party desserts simple. My favorite dessert idea is Vampire Cupcakes. Sweet Cake with white icing and two red puncture marks on top. They are easy to make and taste great. They look really nice. Any red, black or white combination will work well. These novels give us so many great party ideas and decorating ideas…your Twilight party is sure to be a hit.

Have Some Fun Party Games and Trivia Questions!

You know enough about Edward, Bella and the rest of the characters to come up with some interesting Twilight party trivia questions. Have a couple of your friends put their heads together to come up with some good ones too.

Cast of Characters:

The Vampires:

• Edward Cullen
• Doctor Carlisle Cullen
• Esme Cullen
• Alice Cullen
• Jasper Hale
• Rosalie Hale
• Emmett Cullen

The Humans:

• Bella Swan
• Charlie Swan
• Jacob Black
• Billie Black
• Renee
• Jessica
• Angela
• Mike
• Eric

Have You Read the Twilight Saga Yet?

No?? I love the story. It tells us about Edward Cullen, a hundred year old vampire, and Bella Swan, a 17 year old high school student, who meet and feel an instant attraction to each other.

For Bella, this is a dangerous situation though she doesn’t realize that at first. Edward is more attracted to Bella’s human scent than he has ever been. He wants to drink her blood and it’s a stronger attraction than he has ever had to fight before. They still find a way to be together…though, while Bella is human, this will never be easy. There are four books in the Saga and I read them in less than two weeks. I didn’t think I would be so dazzled by these books…but I was!
Once you read the story and fall in love with the characters, like so many others have, you won’t be able to wait to have your Twilight party!

-By: Jillian Gallo

Jill Gallo is Ms. Party Ideas and she writes about fun party stuff for Party Ideas Parade. Here are some more Twilight articles you might like to read, Twilight Party Ideas. Jill loves to write about all kinds of unique party ideas and enjoys swapping good party ideas with you.

New Year’s Eve and the New years eve Party, is one of the most exciting times of the year in Toronto. There are plenty of activities in this city during this time when friends and families gather to celebrate. One of the many activities in which a deejay is indispensable, that take place in Toronto on new years eve are parties. There is much drinking, dancing, singing and eating in these parties. Laser lights and Fireworks are usually also on display in these parties.

In Toronto New Year’s Eve parties, people also engage in activities such as watching films, hayrides, live theaters. One may choose to have their Party in a hotel, restaurant and nightclubs or at home. For those who wish their parties to include film watching or play watching, they may go watch the film first then bring in the deejay to play the music later.

Music plays a big role in Toronto New year’s Party. It keeps people on their feet and usually starts the party. Some party planners prefer to have musician do live shows as the disk jockey plays the tracks for them at their parties while others prefer to hire a Toronto DJ at the party to play music throughout the night. The Deejay often starts the night with loud music that will make every one get into the mood of the night. The people can go to the disk jockey during the night to request for their favourite songs.

In a Toronto New Year’s Eve party, the eating part normally takes the centre stage. Most hosts prefer to serve much food in these parties, as there are usually many people in these parties. One may choose to serve Canadian food or serve delicious cuisines from other parts of the world. When people are eating, there may be a temporary lull in the party. The deejay should play good music to bring life back to the party.

In most Toronto parties, the friends and family of the host normally eat, drink and dance for the rest of the evening until about midnight. This is the hallmark time of the evening as the Toronto Dj leads the party revellers in counting down the minutes until midnight, which marks the beginning of the New Year. At this time, there is usually excitement and as soon the clock hits twelve midnight, the people go out to light multicoloured fireworks and cheer way into the night. The deejay usually serves to keep the attendants well entertained throughout the evening.

Some people include party games in their Toronto New Year’s parties, to add in the festivities of the period. These usually add to the overall excitement of the party and keep the guests engaged. If the games one has chosen include music, they can ask the disk jockey to play the relevant music for the guests as they play the game. For one to come up with a great Toronto New year’s eve party they should make sure they have enough funds to fund the entire party including the food, different kinds of drinks, good music and games that will entertain the guests.

-By: Rafi Michael

Toronto New Years Eve Dj
Christmas is coming up fast and you need to book your services early in order to get what you need when you need it. The Christmas holidays are the busiest times for DJs . for more info vist:http://www.videobabylon.ca/dj-for-corporate-events-in-toronto.html

If you’re going to be planning a special event soon, you’ll need to begin thinking about how to choose the right Party invitations for that event. No matter whether you’re sending surprise Party invitations cards or birthday Party invitations cards, you’ll need to choose the right ones for the event you want to celebrate so that you can make sure the right tone is set and that you can get the most people to join your party.

Theme Party Cards – Today, party planners are moving more towards themes than ever before. You simply can’t have birthday parties, for example, without deciding on some way to unify all of the elements. For example, if the birthday boy or girl is a fan of racecar driving then you’ve got your theme right there. Have a race car shaped birthday cake, let guests play racing games on a video game console system, show footage from past races on televisions around the party facility, decorate with the numbers of the person’s favorite driver, etc.

However, all of that planning is going to start by you sending out party invitations cards decorated with race cards or any similar design. That’s going to give guests a taste of what they can look forward to. The most popular birthday themes you will want to consider are:

Have you ever wanted to throw a Party? Did you ever want that Party to be so unique that everyone talked about it for months afterward?

You can throw an incredible Party! You can be remembered for the fantastic parties you throw.

Many Details Should Be Considered in Your Party Plans

Throwing a party is the ultimate exercise in multi-tasking. You must consider the day of the week the party will take place, the time of the day or night, your budget, the menu, clean-up before and after, party favors, music, guest list, theme, party location, and what you will wear.

When you consider all the details, it can be quite overwhelming for one person. Where do you start? As a party planner for hundreds of parties in my lifetime, I believe the best place to start is with DELEGATING.

Decide who will be working on this big endeavor with you and what they can do to help. Do not attempt to do it yourself. Don’t you have a full-time job or full-time responsibilities? It is only if you have a life of leisure can you afford the thought of throwing the party all by yourself. And after you give it some thought, think again and start DELEGATING.

Avoid Party Problems from the Start. Go for Party Fun!

Not delegating can easily result in one thing: working yourself so hard that you will not have any fun at your own party. You will be so stressed that it will show on your face. You will not look refreshed, alert, and as if you want to give your guests care and consideration and that is the worst possible mistake you could make when throwing a party.

Your Primary Party Success Strategy

Bypass all the negative things that can happen by doing one thing: DELEGATING. Delegate who will be in charge of the food preparation and food clean-up. You can maintain control of the purchase of the food to insure that the food budget is not exceeded.

Delegate who will be in charge of obtaining the music and entertainment, after you decide what that will be. Delegate who will be in charge of sending out the invitations after you decide who will be invited.

Delegate who will purchase or create the party favors after you have decided what those party favors are.

As you can see, even though you delegate responsibilities to others for your party, you still maintain good control of the entire party. You maintain control of the budget, the theme, the location, the menu, and the entertainment by making these decisions upfront. Any responsibility you delegate is one that has boundaries you determined ahead of time. This way you spread the work but maintain the control.

Here’s an example of how this strategy works. You decide on a party for St. Patrick’s Day. The theme is everything green, including eco-friendly green products. Your party favors are eco-friendly products. Your music is Irish music, Celtic music. Your location is your house and you want to set up the living room, kitchen, bathroom and outdoors in a way that it has St. Patrick’s Day decorations and everything green. Your menu is appetizers and desserts only since the party is after work and lasts for a few hours. Your budget is $500, not a penny more. Your guest list is 20 and you think half of them will probably show. Most of your preliminary work is done with these decisions.

In the delegating process, you ask your friends who would be willing to help out. You’ll need four or five to drastically cut your workload. One friend, Mary will help out with the appetizers and desserts. She’s allotted $150. Sam will help with decorations and music. He has been a disc jockey before and is thrilled to accommodate you. Sarah is interested in eco-friendly products and can get them wholesale. She is allotted $80 for party favors. You can decorate your house yourself and start collecting items such as streamers, centerpieces, napkins, kitchen and bathroom towels, etc. on your budget of $85. Mark is a graphic designer and can create the invitations. Gayle will help as your party assistant, taking care of little tasks that no one else does, including sending out the invitations, assisting with clean-up and helping with decorations.

You can see that delegating has saved you hours of work. The advantage is that you will have a great time at your next party because you are not frazzled and dazzled from all the work. To have a great party, start with rule #1. Delegate. Do not be afraid of it. Just do it.

-By: Dr. Donna Schwontkowski

Dr. Donna Schwontkowski is the author of The Party Solution Handbook, a book on how to make your next party memorable. She is also a professional speaker and the President of MDM, Inc. You can find more information about her and this book at Party Solution Handbook and also receive a free special report, What People Remember Most at Parties.