7 Tips for minimizing stress during wedding planning
It cannot be emphasized enough that weddings are stressful. From the time the proposal until the big day there seems to be an infinite number of decisions that have to be made; and in the moment, they all seem to be the most important thing in the world. Hopefully the below tips will help you keep perspective and minimize your stress during the planning process.
Make a budget and stick to it.
Of course you have been dreaming about this day since you were little, but remember that five year old you did not have any concept on what things cost. Overspending on the “perfect” wedding often leads to stressful interactions between the couple or whoever is footing the bill and can start the marriage off on the wrong footing. The best way to avoid this is to make a budget and stick to it. Once you have the budget on paper, everything else is negotiable. If you can save money on the catering or venue, splurge and get that horse drawn carriage the five year old in you still wants.
Set expectations with everyone involved early.
Communication is critical to preventing stress during the planning process. Never expect those around you to know what you want unless you communicate your expectations with them. If you want your best friend from elementary school to be your MOH, make sure you communicate that to others who may think you want them to be as soon as the decision is made. If you are accepting funding from parents or future in laws, be clear if there strings attached and before you accept their help and be clear with what strings you are willing to accept.
Set expectations with yourself.
You are human, you have the same 24 hours a day the rest of us have, and have limited resources. There is an old adage that you can get things good, fast, or cheap, but you can only pick two. That isn’t always true with weddings, because things are rarely cheap, but the true meaning is that you have to decide what is important. Just like you have to set expectations with others, you have to with yourself as well. You cannot spend every waking moment on planning, you will likely not be able to afford every top tier package and vendor. Decide early on what are must-haves and what are nice-to-haves, if you write down a priority list it can help you decide which are which. Once your decision is made, don’t dwell on it, instead use that effort for the next decision that needs to be made.
Give yourself as much time as possible.
Some weddings are planned very quickly and there can be very good reasons for that, however, to minimize stress, make sure you give yourself as much time as possible. Keep a calendar with important dates so you don’t miss anything. It can be very helpful to plan backwards from the big day, you get a better visual of what needs to be decided and when. If you don’t need to decide on the invitations for another six weeks, put that aside so you can concentrate on more pressing matters, the calendar will help you with this.
Take time for yourself.
It becomes easy to allow wedding planning to fully consume every aspect of your life. Make sure you are taking care of yourself, eating, exercising, sleeping, and finding things to do that do not involve the wedding. Failing to do these things affect your mental and physical health and can contribute to making decisions you later regret. You aren’t taking care of the wedding if you aren’t taking care of yourself.
Remember you are part of a team.
You are not alone. If you have a wedding coordinator, you know you have a team, but what if that isn’t in the budget? Well you have friends, family, and most importantly your partner. Most people are willing to be a sounding board or to help coordinate the day with you. Delegation is underrated, you aren’t weak because you can’t do everything yourself, you are smart to use other people’s talents to your advantage, just make sure you properly thank them.
The world will not end if your wedding isn’t perfect.
I know this is difficult to hear, but if the chicken dinner was dry, the DJ didn’t play aunt Susan’s favorite song, or the the flower girl trips down the isle your big day isn’t ruined. All the planning in the world cannot prevent every problem, things happen. Be prepared to roll with the day’s challenges always remember the perfect marriage is more important than the perfect wedding. Remember “perfection” is in the eye of the beholder and you will never make everyone happy with every decision.
Moon Rize Entertainment is always ready to help with your entertainment on your big day. Contact us at moonrizeentertainment@gmail.com for a free consultation and no pressure quote.
