Planning sucks. Events don’t. At Olin, it’s remarkably easy to do things, but also remarkably hard to make them happen. We know this from experience, so we’ve collected an encyclopedia of advice. Now, from the two guys on campus that talk the loudest and think the least, here’s what we’ve learned from our mistakes. And if your attention span is really that cooked, we’ve bolded the best tips.
POINT 1: Plan in advance. Easier said than done, we know, but really, the more time you give yourself, the less stress you’ll have. Unless you procrastinate it all until the last night anyway (not that we’d know anything about that, of course).
Get the things you need, and plan on having them for the time leading up to your event. If it’s food, figure out what fridge(s) it’s going into. Don’t forget the plates, utensils and napkins. For that matter, any event should have a detailed budget—just make a simple spreadsheet with everything you need to buy, how much it costs, and where you’re getting it. You might be getting your food from Costco , your decorations from Amazon, and your prizes from Lovehoney. You have to keep track of it all, stay within budget, and make sure you don’t forget anything when you go shopping (which is the worst).
But you can’t just have the things. You need the people there to enjoy them. That is why you’re throwing an event, isn’t it? Surely, it’s not to embezzle school funds… Get the event in front of your audience. In multiple forms. Send an email. Attach an iCal (but not like Lindy Hop did…). Make a poster. Make lots of posters. Bump the email. Get word of mouth going. Be annoyingly present. And present yourself early. If it’s a big event, you might want your poster and email out as much as a month before the big day, an RSVP form 2 weeks beforehand, and bumps at one week and the three days before. (Try not to be too annoying… Remember you can always get a friend to bump your email, so you don’t look like the bad guy.) And if you can, don’t plan over the big clubs. Talk to your local Formula, BAJA, FWOP, and other reps.
And finally, plan, plan, plan. At the end of the day, the average attendee might will not know the difference between a well-planned and poorly-planned event, but the burden on you will be less if it is planned out well. Here’s an attempted summary of tips: Set up always takes longer than you expect. Really. Move your stuff early. Know where it’s going before, during, and after the event. Does your space have enough tables? What are you doing about leftovers? That sort of thing. If you’re working with vendors outside of Olin or catering (which must be done through Rebecca’s), these people are going to need a plan well in advance. Call them (so they can’t ignore you), and do it early. Same as vendors, people on campus will be willing to help, but they need advance. You can’t just ask someone to help with no notice and expect them to be able to.
POINT 2: With that said, you should still ask many of your friends, if not all of them, for help (just with plenty of advance notice). The amount of help you can source from any single person is not the most important factor to consider. Rather, it’s the fact that you should be begging so many people that surely some of them will feel bad enough to help out. So, shower your friends with event iCals and make your shift spreadsheets, because you are going to need them. Make sure to stress to them the importance of this event to both you and the community, guilt trip, peer pressure, learn the Voice from the Bene Gesserit sisters, and use whatever that’s at your disposal to make sure your friends are as committed to this event as you are, because, again, you are going to need them when time comes.
Once you’ve secured a good batch of samaritans to perform your deeds, it’s time to put your Project Manager hat on. Unfortunately, planning an event is not unlike managing a complex project. Divide up your tasks, and don’t be afraid to delegate to people—this is presumably what you wore out your knee pads for. And once you have them in your grasp, be sure to check in with them on their progress periodically, and never let an important part of the event hinge on one single person, unless you truly, truly trust them.
Some common themes of help include finding a friend who has a car (book them early), or one who commands the ever elusive, yet highly coveted Costco membership (though the school can now Instacart from Costco—email Nichole). And sometimes, they’re just some plain old muscles that will help you move event supplies, clean up, and be there to support. The cleaning crew is important, because you’re going to be tired from setting up and running the actual thing. You will NOT want to clean up. Make sure you get help with this because no one else is going to want to do the dirty work unless you look them in the eye and ask them as they consider how saying no would make your face contort into a facade of indifference masking your disappointment.
POINT 3: Coming back to the Olin-ness of it all, it is (relatively) easy to do stuff on campus! But, there’s a lot of idiosyncrasies about our campus that are also easy to forget, especially since quite a few things have changed in the last few years. We like to think about it in terms of spaces, bureaucracy, and students.
As for spaces, it is crucial that, for any space you would like to use, you reserve the space and check in with the people that run that space. Sometimes, it’s just inviting the space via iCal, but other times, you should do a little more due diligence. If it’s the library, email the librarians. The dining hall? Talk to the kitchen staff and facilities. Above all, reach out to the people in charge of the spaces so you can stay in good standing with them for your four years here. Some other quick tips: Don’t use the workroom sink for dishes—there’s a nice little kitchenette on the first floor of Milas Hall for you to use! (Or for your cleanup crew, which I’m sure you’ve so diligently assembled after reading the prior tips.) Also, there are unimaginable wonders closeted on this campus. Wait. There are unimaginable wonders in the closets on campus. There’s the SAC closet, the clubs closet, the crafts closet, the closet full of large scale cooking supplies. The list goes on. Like I said, unimaginable wonders await. Ask the SAC representatives if they have speakers, lighting, poker sets, a chocolate fountain, or five unopened clothing irons for you to use. (Hint: they have all of this and more!) Ask around, and you’ll find there is a never ending supply of random crap on this campus. And as for asking, luckily, everyone at this school really is just an email away.
Those people just an email away? That’s your ticket. They hold the red tape. Get ready to limbo. The tips here don’t have much of a narrative, unfortunately, so this paragraph is a little bit of a word vomit. Getting a p-card should have at least a day in advance, and requested online purchases need two weeks to get bought, not even to mention waiting for shipping. Purchases over 1000 dollars need to be approved by the Dean of Students. (In writing, that is… having a dean of students to approve them is another thing… for now, check in with Ciara.) A single purchase that large may very likely have a contract associated. Contracts need at least two weeks notice to the Dean of Students. Their recommendation on the vendor side is to start getting the contract at least 1, if not 3 months in advance. It all comes back to planning well and planning early. Some other advance you have to give: party forms should be submitted at least a week prior to the event. You can get things from facilities (tables, chairs, desks, moving things, …), but in our experience, you should give them at least two weeks notice, and you should be hyperspecific in your request. Generally, when it comes to vendors, admin, or any other sort of bureaucracy, you should just plan on everything taking longer than you expect.
That being said, these people support you each and every day in ways you don’t even know. Be kind, respectful, and flexible—facilities is helping you, not the other way around. Say good morning, hold the door for them, and offer them extra food/drink if you have some. It helps to be on good terms with the people doing you a favor. And on the flexibility side, they’ve been doing this longer than you have and might know something you don’t—instead of statements like “I need you to do this very specific thing,” it can be helpful to allow them to do it how they feel is right: “Hey, would it be okay to do this?” or “I just need XYZ to happen, do whatever is the easiest!” Having good email etiquette can go a long way. And speaking of which, emails are your friend!! Get things in writing. Genuinely. If facilities agreed to something, you want a record of it. If admin agreed to something, you want a record of it. If a vendor agreed to something, you want a record of it. Email them early, and keep the receipts. And one last thing on emails: Send summary emails. I know it’s annoying and you could just forward the whole email chain, but think about how lazy you are. That laziness is probably typical of any other person on Olin campus, including the full grown adults that work here. If you figure something out that seems important, it can be helpful to send a summary email to everyone involved that says everything in one place to get everyone on the same page.
We know that’s a lot. Luckily, there are people to help you. If you’re doing this through a club, check in with your club advisor! (The default club advisor is Ciara, but you may have a different one.) If you’re not, check in with Ciara or Nichole (the StAR assistants). We are lucky to have these people that want us to have a good time. And if all else fails, you always have our lovely student body to help you out.
That same lovely student body is the one you’re planning for, too. So figure them out, and plan around them. Don’t freak out when no one shows up to your event right away. Plan on them being a little bit late. It’s just Olin nature. And if you want people to show up a little quicker, say the words “free food.” Trust me. At Olin, food sells, not sex. Same with music (especially live music).. Make a playlist, get a band, hire a DJ—the world is your oyster. Remember that SAC has speakers. (and remember that you should give them notice if you want them…) If all that fails, DM Roger on Instagram, and you can get Babson’s cutest public safety officers at your event. (No, really. It’s that easy.)
POINT 4: Planning an event is never easy, even less so at a school so damn small. After washing over you with this deluge of information—though hopefully not so much that you’ve decided to be done with this piece once and for all—we want to tell you that it will always be alright.
Once you’ve advertised a time and a place for your event (we sure hope you remembered to put those on your poster…), you’ve irrevocably set in stone something larger than you. This event is happening no matter what now, so find peace in the finitude. Stop stressing over your event. It won’t be pretty. There will be plenty of times when you stare into either the bottomless void or distant sky and wonder why on God’s green earth you would ever choose to throw yourself into this whirlpool of mess. But the event is happening now. You’ve solicited help. That one friend who said he was busy will somehow find himself by your side. And once everything has left the bounds of your human capabilities, accept the outcome in tranquility, and know that you aren’t alone.
At the end of the day, if you commit to host something, you’ve joined a small cadre of Oliners who have enough drive and care to do anything for the community. Oliners enjoy any and all occasions to hang out with each other, and you help make it happen. The inseverable pact we signed as we became a part of Olin is ultimately what matters. You, as an event host, are providing yarn for Oliners to spin ourselves in a tighter web. Enjoy the ride.
