How to plan your wedding as a team

It’s full steam ahead for many who are planning weddings right now. But how do you work together as a team, so you both get what you want from your big day? Here are some expert tips to consider.

Be kind and empathic

Yes, it might be your biggest day ever, but people have feelings, too. This is a wonderful growth opportunity to show compassion for your teammate, even when their opinions and actions differ wildly from your intentions.

Clear expectations

As with a good business team, it’s essential that you are both on the same page. Be crystal clear about your priorities and your desired outcomes and listen intently to theirs. Be honest from the very start about how much or how little involvement you want to have in the planning. It’s only natural that if you’re both involved in the planning, there will be some differences of opinion. So, for example, carve out time together before going into vendor meetings to discuss your shared vision – it will save arguments in the long run.

Delegate

Once you’ve done the high-level visioning, you’ll be into the task of mapping out a plan of who is going to do what and when. Remember to check in regularly with each other and keep communicating about how you are feeling with the workload level. Play to each other’s strengths and delegate what you don’t have time or energy for.

Remain flexible

Flexibility on your behalf is probably the best way to reduce stress in the long run. It’s that old saying of “don’t sweat the small stuff” that will see you through some hairy moments of having to reach decisions together on stuff that isn’t that crucial, in the grand scheme of things. I’m thinking napkins, cake flavour and floor plans.

Systems, systems, systems

Again, as with any successful business, you’ll want to get your planning systems squared away early. Use collaborative documents such as Dropbox and consider getting a wedding email address so you can both access the same information together.

The way you work together is a great testing of the waters for a lifetime of joint decision-making, collaboration and project management. So, think of this as a fun team-building activity to celebrate the successful launch of your marriage.