Expect The Unexpected.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned as both an executive event producer and a mother of a toddler, it’s that you should learn to accept that the unexpected is likely to occur, and often at the worst possible time.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned as both an executive event producer and a mother of a toddler, it’s that you should learn to accept that the unexpected is likely to occur, and often at the worst possible time.
For all of us who are running around trying to make everything work, here are a few tricks I’ve learned to be always be prepared for anything that comes my way!.
Take A Deep Breath And Change Your Attitude
I always dread waking up to a text from my nanny saying she’s been up all night with the flu and can’t come in that day. It means instead of my stress-busting morning run, I spend my first waking hours trying to cobble together a care plan between my Dad, sister, Mom, husband and me, shifting meetings and sending a team email that I’ll be working from home to “manage” the child care parade that day.
I used to fear this like nothing else, until I learned to reframe my mindset…now instead of stressing over missed meetings, I take it as a rare opportunity to get to spend a weekday with Jack, out and about at the park, away from my desk!
By reframing our attitude when disaster strikes, we are not only better equipped to process and handle the situation at hand, but people around us also respond in a more calm manner.
Pay Attention To The Words You Use
When producing events, I often swap out the word “challenge” for “opportunities for success” and find that it not only makes people smile, but also manifests the concept of a great solution even before one’s been found.
I’ll never forget one very high profile event - it was a high end reception to kick off the White House Correspondent’s Dinner weekend, and not only were many VIP guests and policy makers going to be in attendance, we also were partnering with HBO on the event bringing added pressure (and A list celebrities!)
My team, production agency and I were working around the clock and every weekend to pull off the event and two weeks before the event, I had a strange feeling that something was awry as I hadn’t received a single email from my agency. And then it hit…
Monday morning, I received an email that the production agency had been dissolved over the weekend, emails were deactivated, documents gone, budget vanished!
Nobody on my team had ever had this happen - who could have predicted this from one of our preferred agencies?
Be Proactive … There Is Always Something You Can Do
Rather than lose my cool, and before sharing anything with my stakeholders, I worked on a solution. I called the VP of another one of our most trusted production agencies and asked if her team could take on the other agency’s team as freelancers for the completion of the event so we wouldn’t lose all the work and knowledge the team had built.
After a really long day of negotiating, they agreed, and while we lost a day ramping the new team up in their new setting, we also gained additional resources from the new agency which helped make our event even better!
What more, some of those team members went on to be full time employees for the new agency, so I was able to continue partnering with them in the future. They were not only grateful, they went above and beyond to make sure the event was flawless.
So I challenge you…
The next time you arrive at the airport at 9am when your flight is actually 9pm (yes, this has happened to my husband and I once), will you complain, or make the most of an extra 12 hours you have free?
Expect the unexpected and you’ll live a less stressful life!
The Importance of Family Dinner
As a working mom, I am constantly thinking about the never ending to-do list of things that need to get done. When we think of planning events, it is easy to think about the big things but what about the daily events?
As a working mom, I am constantly thinking about the never ending to-do list of things that need to get done. Call the client back, do the laundry, get to the gym, quality time with my family … and the list goes on.
It’s easy to forget that our lives are a series of small events that happen every day. What is your daily non-negotiable routine? What about family dinner?
You’re Making Memories Every Day
When we think of planning events, it is easy to think about the big things - weddings, anniversaries, holidays, graduations - but what about the daily events?
When I look back on my childhood, my memories as a kid are of my mom or dad’s night routine. They would cook dinner every night and we all came together as a family.
Before you go thinking life was easier in the olden days, let me be clear that my mom ran her own interior design business and my dad was an executive at a tech startup - they were just as pressed for time as we are in this always connected age. The reason we were able to do this nightly ritual was because we chose to make that time together sacred.
Rituals And Routines
My parents instilled in us the value of home cooked meals with fresh ingredients, never served straight out of a box or a can. It wasn’t just the food I remember, it is the ritual. My parents would open a bottle of wine and play jazz while they were cooking; it became Pavlovian to me!
Nightly dinner was an experience of our life together, not just another chore to be done.
To this day when I get home that same ritual is sacred to me. As a busy mom with a corporate event planning job, my book writing business, and a toddler, I hope I am instilling in my son the same memories and lessons.
As soon as I walk in the door our wonderful nanny switched the music to the jazz and so the nightly routine begins as I begin chopping veggies and connecting with her about the day!
My Challenge To You
Make a list of your daily habits. Which ones spark excitement and which ones elicit dread? How could you make a routine to make that experience one you enjoy? What can you outsource to make more room for routines you love?
This is your life, let’s make it a memorable one!
3 Ways To Cook Healthy Food
I know first hand that we have the power to choose to live whatever life we want. I for one want to choose one that is full of joy and abundance, not dread. So how do you want to tackle nightly dinner? As a chore or something you are excited to plan?
“What’s for dinner?” Oh the dread this one question can carry, but only if you let it. I know first hand that we have the power to choose to live whatever life we want. I for one want to choose one that is full of joy and abundance, not dread.
So how do you want to tackle nightly dinner? As a chore or something you are excited to prepare and enjoy?
What is a healthy meal?
Growing up my parents always cooked delicious meals but always nutrient dense. That means no foods with sugar, always whole wheat, fresh vegetables and healthy proteins, starches and plenty of olive oil.
Now as a mother myself, I embody the same cooking ethos. While I may serve certain foods for special occasions, nothing is off limits. Jack, our son, has been raised to eat that way and now he actually insists on tasting whatever veggie I’m chopping - broccoli, mushroom, carrots - he’ll even eat raw onion!
What toddler does that?!
With my husband working at a startup and me working as an executive event producer for a top brand, our days are jam-packed. Here are some tips I use to make dinner a time to connect without the overwhelm.
How to Make Healthy Taste Good
1. Buy Fresh, Organic, High Quality Produce
When you buy really great produce it actually tastes better. If you have access to garden fresh produce, even better! My Mom used to send me home from her house with bushels of fresh produce from her garden and I would use that as the basis for which I planned menus around. Have you ever noticed why a farmer’s market vegetable is so much sweeter and crunchier than store-bought? There really is something to eating foods that were only recently alive vs. those that have been in and out of trucks and warehouses for a few weeks.
2. Use High Quality Oils and Spices
High quality oils and seasoning bring out the natural flavors of food. AKA they make things taste really good. I use olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, and sesame oil and my all time favorite is pumpkin seed oil! It’s hard to find, but it takes nutty and is a rich green color! I use spice blends on veggies, fish and meats to inspire flavors from other regions. And by simply like letting veggies roast with really good oil, gourmet sea salt, fresh ground pepper and maybe some thyme or garlic, you’ll have a restaurant worthy dish once the oven caramelizes the flavors.
3. Prep Ahead Of Time
Think ahead! Chop the veggies during nap time (or ask your nanny to do the same), chop a huge batch all at once on the weekend that you can cook during the week so that you have less work to do at dinner time. And I like cooking food that can roast in the oven so dinner is cooking away for me while I’m giving my son his bath. By the time I finish reading him his books and tucking him in, dinner’s ready!