How to plan a holiday party

With all of the social media that we have today, being able to keep up with friends and family is easier than ever.

However, no matter how easy it is to keep up with everyone, there really is nothing like a reunion to make these relationships really feel special, especially during the holiday season.

Maybe it’s all in your head, but there is something powerful about holding someone’s hand or giving someone a big hug.

That’s why parties and also reunions are still pretty prevalent today.

If there were one major criticism of them, it’s that they are hard to put together.

Think about how hard it is to get some friends together for a night out. Not easy. Have you ever tried putting a band together? No, thanks. The same goes for family parties or friend reunions.

If you’ve got a possible party on the horizon and want it to go from OK to great, here is a basic guide to help you along the way this season:

Set-up a committee — It takes more than one person to plan a party. Sure, a little one with a small group of friends might be OK, but if you’re going for a graduating class or family event, delegating duties will be paramount to keeping your sanity. You need to get a few people together to help break-up the responsibilities for this event.

Set dates early — This is where you and your planning committee have to really get the word out about the event. It’s important to realise that you won’t be able to please everyone because everyone’s schedules won’t line up. Don’t fret, though. Even if someone can’t be there, social media can help them connected via photo albums to check or even live streaming!

Get a final count — Set deadlines for responses from prospective attendees. You need to know how many people are in so that you can plan for a venue, as well as any food or accommodations. This, along with setting dates will probably be your hardest tasks. Stick to your guns.

Too many activities — Though you may want to provide a number of activities for your group, it’s also nice to just sit back and hang with each other, especially if a lot of time has gone by since last touching base. Trying to reconnect over laser-tag isn’t easy.

Venue — Finding the right place to host your reunion is important because they’ll hopefully be able to handle everything. If you’re working with a venue that is also a hotel & corporate meeting space, they can probably handle A/V matters, catering, & room bookings. This may be a nice thing for guests traveling a longer distance.

A party is all about reconnecting with people with whom you’ve lost contact. You want to spend more time making those connections again rather than being completely frazzled by the reunion-planning process.

By being organised, planning ahead, divvying out the workload, and finding the perfect place to host, you’re sure to have a great event and have people excited about the next one.

By Alfred M.
Christ & Co.