I’d love to think of myself as an optimist but realistically, I’m normally on the look out for disaster.
Web MD is officially banned in our household (it’s never just a head ache, I explain!) while I’m pretty confident that if there was an award for Best Emergency Kit for Conferences and Workshops- Automobile Category, I would win. My pet sitting letters are a full page, single space with 0.5″ margins and covers every scenario short of Stock Market Crash.
I blame my luxury hotel background. Sure things happened but we always had to deliver. Sometimes I shook my fist at those five stars and diamonds, but it taught me to be prepared.
I was trained early on to have a Plan B, as well as a Plan C and D. The fact is- there is always a solution to every problem- even if it’s not your first choice. I’ve held wedding rehearsals by candlelight and glow sticks, following a hurricane. I’ve seen wedding cakes never arrive. Sweetheart tables created in under 60 seconds when a bride decides she wants one- as she’s walking towards the Ballroom.
Now let’s flash forward to yesterday.
I’ve been having computer issues for a good week leading up to my speaking engagement tomorrow at the Association of Bridal Consultants North Carolina meeting. Two days prior to the trip, I was face to face with the blue screen of death and a garbled message saying my hard drive was toast. According to Dell, a new hard drive was en route– and would arrive in a week. Sure I pay to run online back up on my data but my lap top was no longer my trusty partner in crime as I made my way South.
For any of my twitter peeps following, this would be an #epicfail.
My presentation now sits on two computers- my not so stable lap top and an old clunker Dell lap top that is perfectly capable to assist me in presenting tomorrow, and may outlast us all. My presentation is also uploaded to my You Send It account, my Google docs and is saved in my Drop Box just in case I need to make a switch in under 30 seconds.
I have a version in PowerPoint and Keynote just in case. I have a thumb drive with my presentations, all fonts needed and logo. I even have a printed copy should we lose electricity and I have to wing it just like I did junior year with an all Spanish 20 minute presentation on Eva Perone.
I also researched the content information for the speakers following me on Sunday and reached out to them to see if could borrow their lap top (big thanks to my new favorite person of the week Terra Bailey who responded with an enthusiastic yes within minutes). A bit much? Sure. But now I know I can sleep tonight.
My point? Life happens. As professionals we’re expected to carry on, plain and simple.
As we wrap up the end of the off season, take time to make sure you have all your proverbial ducks in the row for wedding season- from a back up program on your computer to ‘in case of emergency’ wedding pros you can call should you hit a bump in the road.
And if possible- marry your web designer. Best move I ever made. 😉
Until next time,
Meghan Ely is the owner of wedding marketing and wedding pr firm OFD Consulting. She is the exclusive wedding pr columnist to wedding marketing journal WedLock magazine and is a highly sought after speaker in the wedding industry. She loves ruffle table runners and Royal Wedding Tchotchkes. To learn how OFD Consulting can assist you with your wedding marketing and wedding pr, please contact us today.
