Do I need a wedding planner?

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Question

I am a female executive who is always well organised and I am very good at planning events on my job and for family gatherings. I am getting married in about six months, so I do I really need to hire a wedding co-ordinator?

Elizabeth the Executive

Dear Elizabeth,

Let’s face it, the modern bride now has access to a range of information and planning tools freely available on the internet or cable TV. Coupled with the reality that we live in a world of do-it-yourself culture and wedding apps, the super-organised bride sees this as a great way to take charge by contacting their own suppliers and making all their arrangements, armed with a Google-sourced bridal checklist.

The disadvantage of this option, however, is that the full responsibility for execution of the wedding day itself falls solely on the bride and groom or their family members who often have little or no experience in this area. Apart from the personalised service available from an expert in the field, here are at least three good reasons to hire a wedding co-ordinator instead of trying to do it yourself:

You want your big day to be perfect, so you may be a control freak and know exactly what you want and how you want it done but here’s the bad news. You can’t be a bride and a planner on the same day! Do you want to spend the morning of your wedding supervising the set up of the bar, the decorating of your venue or the layout of the cutlery at each place setting on the table? Or even worse, calling your family member every half hour (while getting your hair and makeup done) to see if these tasks have been completed on time? Hire a day-of-wedding co-ordinator who can execute your vision to perfection.

Planning a major life-changing event like a wedding requires dedicated time, patience, organisational skills, diplomacy in dealing with both sides of the family, budgeting skills and the list goes on. Keeping on top of everything that needs to be done, when it needs to be done and who needs to do it (while holding down your full-time day job) can be stressful, nerve-wracking and downright exhausting, especially for executives such as yourself. Leave it to a professional to handle the multitude of tasks and focus on planning your honeymoon and your new life post the wedding day activities.

To put it mildly, you have “family issues.” Planning a wedding often involves the merging of two sets of family dynamics which can make the planning process even more stressful for the bridal couple who are already trying to mesh their own personalities ahead of the wedding.

Long story short, hiring a wedding professional saves you time, stress, and believe it or not, money, as they can guide you on how and where to cut costs and keep expenses down.

Try contacting an event or wedding planner for a better idea of how they can assist you in these areas. These conversations cost you very little to nothing now but can save you huge sums of money and a lot of time and emotional stress in the future.

All the best!

AFETT

AFETT is a not-for-profit organisation formed in 2002 with the goal of bringing together professional women and engaging in networking opportunities, professional training and business ideas. ASK AFETT is a column meant to address issues and concerns of professionals seeking advice to assist in progressing in their careers. Today's response was written by AFETT member, Colleen Cameron, manager of Ebony Belle Communiques. Learn more about AFETT at www.afett.com, search for AFETT Events on Facebook, follow us @AFETTEXECS on Twitter or contact us at (868) 343-2160. Email us your career-related questions at admin.afett@gmail.com.

The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors, meant strictly as advice and guidance, based upon their experience and expertise. In no way are they meant to be legally binding upon AFETT and or its members, servants nor agents.

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"Do I need a wedding planner?"

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