Video:Career Profile: Event Planner

Transcript:Career Profile: Event Planner

Hi, I'm Liron David, from Eventique, premiere event planning in New York City, here for About.com. Today I'm going to show you what it's like to be an event planner.

Event Planning: A Typical Event

Another wedding just ended in the same room we're about to go into. We've got three hours to turn over the entire room, make it fabulous. Amazing how magic can happen so quickly in the entire room. We've been planning this wedding for about six months. We got here at about three-o-clock, started unloading everything, staging everything in the room next door. And wait for the prior wedding to be done. If you can't deal with stress, don't get into this business.

An event planner is the one person, the one main focal person, that's responsible for everything that happens when an event is put together. An event planner has vendors on their, on the top of their hand, that they can twist and contort in different ways, that are needed based on the vent.

Venue and catering are the first two things that we would focus on. Design, decor, production, the theme, if there's any kind of a video that needs to take place. Transportation, hotel accommodations, performances or entertainment or anything else that takes the stress off of the client.

Starting Out as an Event Planner

I started as a dj. I actually worked in nightlife at the same time. I was DJing weddings and bar mitzvahs on the side. I owned my own sound equipment and the more I was out there. The more people said hey you've been to so many events as a DJ, who should I use as a caterer? Who did you see do nice floral work? Where can I get, you know, nice lighting from, and I had obviously met all of these different companies and vendors and I said, well, sure I know who I like and who I've seen that did a great job when I was working.

So, I started recommending different vendors and people started depending on me to bring them to the best places to the best people who could do the best job and start an event planning company where I could arrange the entire event from A to Z. Start small on the back side behind the curtains. See what goes on, that makes an event possible to take place. And the more experience you have, there's nothing you can learn in a classroom for a power circuit going out in front of 500 people.

Event Planner Qualities

Nothings going to prepare you for how you're going to deal with that crisis at that moment. Somebody's who's a problem solver, someone who's creative. Someone who doesn't wake up in the morning and wants to sit by a computer from 9 to 5. Someone who's able to be social and deal with many different types of people, be able to be patient with clients through thick and thin.

The hardest thing is always trying to please people. Always trying to find a way to outdo yourself from the last time they saw you in action. That's the biggest challenge.

Thanks for watching. To learn more, visit us on the Web at About.com.