Advertisement

Are You A Time User Or A Time Waster?

by

The annoying side of my homes is when my garbage pilled up but luckily I we have a rubbish removal northern beaches Sydney. If you are like me, you’ve often wished there were 48 hours in a day instead of just 24. There never seems to be enough time to get everything done that you want. Since we just have about 16 hours a day not counting sleep time, it’s important how we use the time we have.

On the average, people waste about 2 hours a day. This is mainly from poor planning. If a person is unorganized, they waste time trying to find things, they miss appointments, they only do one thing at a time when they could be doing two.

Good time management is a major building block to success. Oftentimes, it’s not how much time we spend working but how efficiently we do the work. The key to successful time management is careful planning and setting priorities.

Plan your day, your week, and your month in advance. Know when things need to be done. A great way to “buy time” is to multi-task. Do more than one thing at a time. There are many things that do not require concentrated mental effort. These are more easily combined.

“Failing to plan is planning to fail,”- unknown

Even though I am a big pro football fan, I can’t justify sitting down and spending three hours watching a game. I have to be doing other things while I do it. Thank goodness for instant replay! I’ve found this is a good time to spend icing injuries or some other busy work. I can also record the games and watch them while exercising. I exercise about 30 minutes a day so during the football season I can watch a game during the week without wasting any time doing it.

When you run errands try to do as many as you can on one trip. If you are self-employed, you can combine personal errands that are on the way to a business errand and have the mileage written off as a business expense.

I’ve been fortunate to have been able to work at home for the past ten years. It’s been great because I hate to waste time commuting. If you must commute, you can use the time to listen to audio self-improvement tapes, audio books or anything educational.

If you are a regular exerciser and belong to a gym, think about working out at home. If you lack the space and money for exercise equipment, try traditional body weight exercises. A little research on the Internet can show you websites devoted to this subject. Even though I lifted weights for 20 years, I’ve converted to body weight exercises. I’ve found they feel better and get the same if not better results. Of course, if you go to the gym to socialize or network, that’s okay. You’re doing more than one thing at a time. You can go walking with your wife. That way you’re getting exercise and husband / wife interaction at the same time.

Setting priorities enables you to get the most important things done. Keep you eye on the big picture. Don’t let low priority things bump off the higher priority tasks from your schedule. If you’’ve only got so much time, it’s imperative you spend your time doing the things that bring you the most benefit.

“Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.”

– Goethe

Time is so precious. If you want to be successful in life you need to be spending more time being productive and doing things that are moving you forward. Spending hours a day watching TV, playing computer games, or surfing the Internet is not productive time usage. We all need downtime but you need to determine how much is really necessary. If you use your productive time efficiently then you will have more time to relax and do the fun things.

How to Throw a Successful 21st Birthday Party

by

With private dining areas and full event spaces available for hire, we can cater to 21st birthday venues Melbourne parties of all sizes and provide AV set-ups for speeches and slideshows as needed.

1. Set the Date, and Set it Early

The key to any successful event is careful and timely planning. You should begin to plan your party at least two months in advance: make your venue and catering bookings early on so that you don’t miss out on the ones you want most, and send your invites as soon as possible so that your guests can save the date.

Set your RSVP date four weeks before your birthday party. This way, you’ll have a precise guest list to give to your caterer and your venue hire company so that they can finalise their arrangements for your event.

2. Pick the Perfect Catering Service

As with any event, the food you serve will impact on the success or failure of your party. At a 21st birthday party food service is particularly important in order to limit the number of intoxicated guests at your party. 21st birthdays are notorious for over-indulgent party-goers.

A cocktail service is one of the best options for your party catering, as your guests will be constantly consuming small, delicious morsels of food, and they will be encouraged to mingle and chat amongst themselves. Talk to your caterer about arranging a cocktail menu for your party.

Your caterer will have a set menu from past functions that you can pick and choose from: however, don’t be afraid to talk to your caterer about your own menu inspirations. Infuse their standard menu with a few of your own personal twists.

Book a tasting session with your caterer so that you can experience the full flavour and presentation of their food. A tasting session is also the perfect time to bring your own ideas to the table. Take inspiration from your theme, from old family favourites, or even from the time of year.

3. Vamp Up the Party with a Theme

Use your wildest imagination to dream up a fun, whimsical theme for your party! Take notes from your favourite music, television shows, movies: you could even incorporate your favourite hobbies, or cultural interests. Some of the more popular themes for 21st birthdays include:

Hollywood: Dress up as your favourite actors and actresses with a Hollywood theme. Have some of your guests act as paparazzi at the door to take photos of you and your friends as you arrive: you could even include a red carpet! If you’re including a short slideshow in the evening’s formalities, you could introduce it as a movie premier.

Era Themes: 60s, 70s, and 80s themed parties are as popular as ever. Not only are they fun and reminiscent, these are easy themes: costuming and music selection are simple. You could also use the year in which you were born to theme the evening.

Colours and Letters: Theme your party subtly with a colour theme. Your decorations, tableware, choice of dress, and even some menu elements can be chosen to reflect your theme. Alternately, you could use a particular letter to theme your evening, such as the first letter of your name.

Casinos: Holding your 21st in a casino does all of the theming for you. Put on your best Las Vegas-style outfit, and organise some themed games and activities.

Your theme can be subtle or overt; sophisticated or outrageous. For a toned-down theme, you could take inspiration from your venue: hold you 21st by the beach and serve seafood and summery cocktails, and have your guests dress for the water; have a good old-fashioned pool party and ask your caterer for a barbecue-style catering service; or you could even hold a large-scale picnic in a picturesque setting, imagination is key!

4. Choosing the Ideal Venue

The length of your guest list, as well as your budget, will help you determine the type of venue that you hire for your party. You want your venue to be large enough to hold all of your guests comfortably. A hired venue will assist you in the arrangement of all of your tables and chairs, tableware, decorations, and sometimes even entertainment and an open bar. Search around for an affordable venue that suits your theme as well as your logistic requirements.

5. Taking Care of the Formalities

The Key: If you’re sticking to tradition, the handing over of the key is an important part of your 21st birthday party. The passing of the key symbolises your becoming an adult: your freedom to open new doors and accept new responsibilities. There are a number of ways to ‘hand over the key’. You could have a key custom-made and cut for the presentation, or set one in a piece of jewellery such as a necklace. You could even have your cake made in the shape of a key.

Giving Gifts: If your guests are encouraged to bring gifts (and most will, without encouragement), arrange to have a clear table where your presents can be placed. Some parents will have a special, surprise gift that they want to present to their son or daughter at the party. The best time to present this gift would be during the speeches.

Speech, Speech: Nowadays, the format of speech giving at birthday parties and weddings is less formal: however they still give your party a sense of occasion, and are a personal touch on your special evening. Talk to specific family and friends about making short, simple speeches for the night. They could include amusing anecdotes or touching words. Set a specific time for the speeches to be made, usually early in the evening and between food service times.

6. Recruit Some Helping Hands

With the amount of organising you’ll need to in the days leading up to the party, you’ll want to enlist the help of some of your family and friends. Ask your family and friends to help you with decorations, table settings, balloon blowing, playlist-making, and even food service! Help from your family and friends is a simple way to lower your costs as well as helping people mix together.

7. Enjoy Yourself!

Once all of the planning is in place, your guests begin to arrive, and the drinks start flowing, relax and enjoy your own hard work! A 21st is once in a lifetime: so enjoy the company of your family and friends, some good food, and a long, memorable night.

Pure Catering was the first significant Brisbane and Sunshine Coast eco-caterer in South East Queensland to adopt these practices. Check out our website for more information of eco-friendly Catering Sunshine Coast for your function. Centrally based in Maleny on the Sunshine Coast we provide quality catering for all of South East Queensland.

Pure Catering is an Australian company based on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, Australia. With combined 35 years in the hospitality industry, in most environments, we are market leader in performance and professionalism. Contact Pure Catering Brisbane for all of your catering needs in Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Noah_P_Davis/1266948

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8059900

20 Money-Saving Wedding & Event Planning Tips

by

So you’re having a wedding or special event, soon to get you going you need to an event venue hire Melbourne. How do I know this? Because you wouldn’t be reading this, if you weren’t! Everyone wants to have a great wedding, birthday party, quinceanera, or special event, and if you can save some money in the process, why not? Here are some easy tips on how to have a fabulous wedding or event, and save money, too!

1. Take your time – Not only is “Take Your Time” a great Country song by Sam Hunt, but it’s great advice! The average length of engagement is 14 months, but it can certainly be longer. Why? The longer your engagement, the longer you have to save money and plan your big day! This goes for planning any event, too.

2. Don’t Get Saturday Night Fever – Though “Saturday Night Fever” was an iconic 70s movie, don’t catch it! Saturday weddings are the norm and venue owners and vendors know this. You’ll always pay the “normal,” premium price for a Saturday wedding or event. Book your event on a Friday, Sunday, or even a weekday, and save some money!

3. Consider the Off-Season – Have a wedding or event in the “off-season” and save lots of money! Wedding season is typically March – July, in Central Texas. Fall weddings are becoming increasingly popular, too! If you have a wedding in December – February, you’ll save a lot of money on your venue and possibly, your vendors!

4. Use Non-Required Vendors – Many venue owners have a written or verbal contract with vendors, and sometimes, they will receive a referral fee, for each booking the vendor gets from this venue. Though this is great for them, it’s not for you! Why? Simply because the vendors are not going to lose that referral fee. Chances are, they’ll raise their prices to cover that fee and you’ll end up paying a premium price for the “preferred vendor.” Some venues will even charge you a fee, if you don’t use their vendors. Feel free to dispute this fee. They want your business, so it doesn’t hurt to try.

5. Shop Around – Always, shop around. With the internet, it’s so easy to get quotes from various vendors. Don’t book the first vendor with the lowest price. Remember to look at the value of what you’re paying for, not simply the lowest price. You may get more value from a vendor who is not the cheapest! Always ask what comes with the service.

6. Book One Venue – Have your wedding ceremony and reception in the same place, if possible. This way, you won’t have to pay the rental fee for two different venues. Many venues offer an outdoor ceremony area and indoor reception area, for one, flat fee. Just ask your wedding officiant to perform the service at your venue. This also saves time and saves your guests from having to travel to different venues.

7. Don’t be Afraid to Ask for More – Weddings and events are great moments, for you, your families and friends, but don’t forget, for venue owners and vendors, though it’s always nice to be a part of someone’s special day, it’s still business. Ask the venue owner/manager, what’s included with the price? Do they offer table linen and chairs with the price, or are they extra? With vendors, ask the same question, what’s included with the price? Then follow it up with “If I decide to book, today, will you throw in anything free or extras?” It doesn’t hurt to ask.

8. Consider a Restaurant – We’re seeing more and more weddings and parties held at local restaurants, versus wedding or event venues. Most restaurants have a minimum person fee, many start at 50 guests. Restaurant managers will simply charge you for the food and drinks, for your guests, and not a venue rental fee. They’ll set up the room, tables, linen, decor, etc., AND they’ll clean up, afterwards, too. Saving you the time and hassle of doing this! You can also ask about hiring your DJ or band to come in and play, for the reception.

9. Take it to the House – The courthouse, that is. Consider getting married at the courthouse, to save a ton of money. You’ll simply pay the filing fee, about $85, in our county. This saves you the time and stress of planning your ceremony, hiring ceremony musicians or a DJ, planning the ceremony, etc. This will leave you time to focus on planning a great reception. This will also mean you’ll save money on your venue, since the number of hours will be less (you won’t need time for the ceremony and cocktail hour).

10. Consider Other Dinner Options – Many restaurants offer on-site catering for phenomenally less than the typical wedding/event catering companies. Call around and get quotes. Be sure to know the number of guests you’ll have. Many weddings we’ve done served BBQ, for dinner. You can save lots of money doing this, and it’s Texas, so nearly everyone loves BBQ! Be sure to have healthy and vegetarian options, too.

11. Reconsider the Cake – Though cakes are traditional for weddings, quinceaneras, and other events, they’re not required. The wedding police won’t show up at your event if you opt to serve something else. Many couples have a small wedding cake for them to cut, and then serve cupcakes, to their guests. Other weddings we’ve done have served cookies, donuts, and even apples! One wedding had decorated apples for the bride and groom, and each table was served a bucket with a variety of chocolate-covered or candied apples. Great idea!

12. Flower Power – The power of flowers is real, (especially their amazing smell) except you don’t get to throw fireballs at things, unless you’re Mario or Luigi, from Mario Bros. Real or fake flowers? Depending upon which kind of flower you choose, real or fake flowers can cost nearly the same. If you’re dead set on real flowers, always choose in-season flowers. If you choose fake flowers, scent can also be added! Keep in mind, roses will always cost more, so consider other types of flowers. We’ve done many weddings without flowers, except the bouquet, and to be honest, no one came up to us and asked “Where are the flowers?” No one will really miss them, honestly.

13. Second Beats First, Sometimes – Though second place is rarely seen as better than first, it can be with décor. Go on Craigslist, and look for wedding décor. You’ll see lots of recent newlyweds selling décor and other items from their wedding. You can save a lot of money buying items second-hand, and no one will notice!

14. Don’t Forget the Grocery Store – Don’t forget, your local grocery store sells flowers at a fraction of the cost! Give them a plenty of notice, and you can get a great deal on flowers, versus the local florist. You can also get great cakes, much cheaper, too!

15. Be Your Own DJ – You can certainly “be your own DJ” for a fraction of the cost. Simply create a playlist of your favorite music, hook up your laptop or iPod to the venue’s sound system, and you’ll hear your favorite tunes, all night! Don’t forget that your guests have a variety of musical taste, so include various genres. If your venue doesn’t have a sound system, rent one from a local musical instrument rental store. Keep in mind, your playlist will not change, take requests, mix the music, or “read the crowd.” Your playlist won’t know when to change genres, like a good DJ will. You will need to have someone “MC” key moments, so you may have to hire someone or have a friend/family member do this. You’ll need dance floor lights, to create the fun atmosphere, too.

16. Know When You Need a DJ – Plan out your timeline and find out when you actually need your DJ to start playing. Keep in mind, DJs charge for their time, hourly, so be sure to ask if set up and break-down is included with the price, or charged separately. If the wedding or event is small, consider only using the DJ for the reception. Often times, we’ll be booked for the ceremony and reception, but the officiant didn’t really need the microphone, since the venue was so small. Think about dinner, too. You can create your own playlist, as mentioned above, and bring a good stereo system to play it during dinner, saving you the cost of having the DJ play music during that time.

17. Make Your Own Photobooth – You’ll need to buy all the props from Amazon or your local party store, buy your backdrop, a few stands to set up your backdrop, and you’ll have an open-air photobooth! Guests can take pictures with their phones. Set up an Instagram wedding account with whatever hashtag you choose, ask your guests to tag your wedding account and voila, your guests pictures will all be there! Your guests won’t be able to have their own photo strips to take home, though. You’ll also have to set up and break-down the photobooth area.

18. Deposits & Payments – Ask about the amount of the deposits, when they’re due, cancellation policies, etc. Many vendors charge 50% of the total cost, for the deposit. Though this is okay, be sure to ask if this is flexible. Can you pay 25%? Why not? Can you pay the total amount in payments? Is there a charge to do this? Get receipts for everything you pay, and always correspond via email, so you have it in writing, too. Vendors sometimes require full payment, before the event happens. Be careful when doing this. Sometimes, the vendors can be late, not fulfill their end of the contract, etc., and you’ve already paid them. Ask if payment can be made the day of the event.

19. Get it in Writing – Though this doesn’t seem like a tip to save money, it actually is. I can’t tell you the number of times we’ve received calls that their DJ or photobooth service won’t return their calls, and they’ve already paid the deposit! These customers lost their deposit, and then had to hire us, anyway. Be smart, get it in writing!

20. Do Your Research – Do your research on vendors, the venue, planning tips, etc. Look for reviews. Remember, no business can have 100% positive reviews. You can’t please people 100% of the time, it’s just not possible. Look at the date of the reviews. Look for different sources: Google, Wedding Wire, Yelp, Facebook, The Knot, etc. If you’re reading this, then you’re obviously doing your research! Way to go! Certainly feel free to contact us if you have any questions or need any advice, and we’ll be happy to help!

Have more questions or need more advice? Contact us!
http://www.Austinsbestdjs.com
http://www.Facebook.com/AustinBestDJs
[email protected]

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Jason_Rubio/1720307

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9211382