Tuesday, September 27, 2011

The Plans of a Planner - Decision Making 101



As we move through the process of planning our wedding, I'm realizing that one of the most difficult aspects of being a wedding planner and planning my own wedding is this: I love too many styles! Black-tie formal wedding - yes, sign me up! Country barn wedding complete with hay bales and champagne in ball jars - absolutely! City chic wedding with feathered centerpieces and ultra-modern details - but of course! Ahhh...how is a bona-fide lover of all things wedding supposed to choose just one style for her own wedding?




Well, my friends, it hasn't been easy, but I'll let you in on a few of my secret weapons of planning.



1. Don't make rash decisions - let them marinate. I've practiced what I preach on almost all of my decisions. Case in point: I've tossed and turned trying to figure out what I want to do about the reception music: Band, DJ, Band, DJ, Band, DJ. I really, really want the evening to flow like a long dinner party without many stops and starts for dances, bouquet toss, etc. So finally, after months on the fence, I made a final decision, emailed my favorite vendor, and voila, done!


2. Once you've made a decision, don't continue to shop for vendors/items in that same category. This is a deadly no-no. Case in point: For months I thought about the type of wedding dress I would want. Once I started researching designers, I found 2 dresses from the same designer that I really loved. I made an appointment, viewed both dresses, made a decision and placed the order. Done. Then....about 2 weeks ago I started looking through wedding magazines (something I haven't had much time to do lately) and found myself drawn to the dresses, and began questioning my purchase. AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! My advice to myself: back away from the magazines (at least the dress ads!). I knew right away that I had to stop thinking "what if..." and continue down the path that I happen to be very happy with.


3. Trust yourself and your planner. Others will definitely want to give you their opinion, tell you what they did for their wedding, suggest something they think is pretty on you, etc. That's great, listen graciously, thank profusely, and then trust your own instincts as to what works best for you and your fiance. It's YOUR wedding. Fortunately, everyone knows I plan weddings and I haven't had to fend off unwanted advice. In fact, I've gone searching for advice and opinions from those I know will be honest with me. At the end of the day, though, it's my and my fiance's final decision on what we want for our big day.


So there you go, my no-nonsense easy-to-remember wedding planning secret weapons.


Happy Planning!


xo

d.

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