Gearing Up! Beating Event Stress...

The Brady Street Festival is an iconic neighborhood celebration drawing 50,000 visitors in one day. Photo cred to Andrew Lomenzo

This Saturday, 50,000 people will descend on Brady Street for what proves to be the largest one-day neighborhood Festival in the City of Milwaukee. As the day of an event draws near, your body interestingly enough seems to start running totally on adrenaline. With nervous energy levels through the roof, sleep becomes both more difficult and more important than ever. Your to-do list is never-ending. The day after an event, your mind and body both seem to be asking “what happened?” More to come on that in a future blog so stay tuned.

TOP FIVE MOST STRESSFUL JOBS

For some, it’s no wonder that Event Planning has been consistently rated by Forbes in the top five most stressful jobs on Earth. Only military positions, firefighters, police officers, and airline pilots are careers considered more stressful. For those of us in the industry, we tend to roll our eyes because truly, planning an event is not a life or death situation. Although those of you who plan weddings may have worked with a bridezilla who did make you fear for your life!

WHY THE STRESS?

Top of the list for me are the million deadlines that all need to come together before you can pull off an event. With so many moving pieces, if you cannot prioritize what needs to be done, you will be left scrambling which will ultimately cost your client or yourself both money and success. Last minute rental fees are no joke; it’s never okay to wait until the last second.

Another stressor is all of the other things you cannot control. As someone who specializes in outdoor events, you’ve probably heard me talk about or read my blog about weather. You know it can’t be controlled but honestly, you don’t want to see an event that you planned for months completely falls apart because of torrential rains.

One of my biggest stressors is the pressure I put on myself to do a good job. Having planned a signature event like Brady Street Festival for several years, I continually try to do it better so that it doesn’t lose any steam.

KICK YOUR STRESS TO THE CURB

So what are some ways to kick that stress to the curb? First, in spite of the increased work load and hours leading up to the big event, it’s essential to maintain as much of a regular routine as possible. Go to bed and get up at the same time every day, even on the weekends if possible. Your ability to function and feel well each day depends on whether you're getting enough sleep; it’s even more important while you are under stress.

Mornings during event season mean that I will be going to CrossFit, taking a yoga class, or going on a bike ride. We have all heard about the benefits of exercise. The endorphins produced during exercise are known to produce anti-anxiety effects which lead to an improved ability to sleep, which in turn reduces stress. See what I did there?

Stick to your usual eating habits. If you are someone who eats three times a day, you need to eat three times a day. Also eat all of your “usual” foods. Now isn’t the time to start grabbing what’s “easy” and ordering out if you are used to eating healthy home-cooked meals. There are a plethora of services available that can help you out with this.

ASK FOR HELP

Finally, don’t be afraid to ask for help from everyone around you. You are surrounded by people who truly want to help you succeed. Now, what’s next on that to-do list…