There’s super typical ways to learn about events.
Binging on a course, reading blogs, or attending an events school for 3 years (yups, I did that!). But that’s not as fun as getting your booty behind-the scenes of an actual event.
Here’s my top 3 recommendations of learning about events, that’s actually FUN! And mostly, free!
#1. Watch the Netflix Documentary
Fyre Festival - The Greatest Party That Never Happened
This documentary is SO GOOD.
Think gorgeous models, blue seas and luxe villas. Well, it was planned to look like that. 😂
It’s all about a con artist who *tries* to plan a Music Festival at The Bahamas. And it was promoted by Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid. You know the kind of things that makes an event looks *legit*
Watch this to see what went wrong during the planning stage. And what type of problems that can come up when planning a large scale event.
This is exactly what it looks like when there’s:
Improper planning (there’s only so much you can “wing it” when planning an event
No budgeting or cost control
Not having an event experience (this means he didn’t even factor things like audience’s safety)
You can watch this and ask yourself:
“if this is my event, how can I do better?”.
Events *looks* easy when it comes from the viewpoint of an audience. But when you plan an event, small things don't seem small anymore.
And your main job is to ALSO anticipate problems.
Your event will have unpredictable things that happen. It can be the weather, the number of people showing up, or even unexpected costs. Your job is to solve these problems as they come up.
Check out the trailer here:
#2. Attend An Event
More specifically, the type of event you are planning to hosts
This means if you are hosting a conference, attend one.
If you are hosting a festival, attend one.
Same with virtual summits! (pro tip, attend a virtual event that’s hosted on the online platform you’re planning to use).
By doing this, you are getting hands-on experience that goes beyond theory. But practical and priceless info!
You can check out the events in your area through event listings like EventBrite or check out your city's event calendar.
Here’s some of the things you can take note of:
What’s their marketing and registration process looks like
The type of manpower needed, and how many people working the event
What’s going on stage and how they transition the stage for the programme
All of the logistics, from the moment you walk in to the event areas
And check out what you did like, and didn’t like from the event - so you'll adopt or change it for your own event!
#3. Volunteer for An Event
Same as above but this one takes much more effort.
This is just like an intensive event school, but without any of the worry of hitting the goals, nor the responsibility of putting one together.
Which makes it WAY MORE FUN.
If you are up to volunteer, simply send over your resume and share what kind of event roles you are happy to do.
It can be:
simple registration tasks
be an event photographer
manning the goodie bags booth
help set-up the venue with logistics
be an event emcee
The opportunities are endless and trust me, the bigger the event, the more they’ll need as much help as they can get. I used to love to volunteer for all sorts of events, especially when it comes to women empowerment conferences. If you are more of an extrovert, you’ll probably enjoy getting to know new people in the industry, or get the speaker’s contacts.
Here's my pro tip:
Volunteer at your favourite non-profit organisation and simply drop them a note. They are usually super appreciative for your help AND you're doing something awesome to support a great cause. Win-win!
Till next time (:
Cheerios,
Rashidah