Be professional wedding planner

If you have a calm nature, a love of parties and a helpful disposition, an exciting and lucrative career in wedding planning can be yours. Almost anyone can convert a present occupation or hobby into being a wedding planner. Today's bride is too busy to plan her own wedding, and what was once expected help from family members is now often unavailable, because they live in other cities or are very busy with their own careers. To reduce tension and to insure a perfect wedding, more and more brides are turning to wedding planners for assistance.

Wedding planners have incredible flexibility in their days, and most planners work out of their homes. It is a career that is easily integrated with child rearing or caring for elderly parents. Most of the work is done over the telephone, and appointments at churches, reception venues, and with the bride usually can be scheduled at convenient times. However, being at the weddings to be sure all the details are carried out and to calm the nervous couple means that wedding planners will have to work on weekend evenings.

Here are ten steps to getting started in your new career:

• First, think about the different elements of a wedding the planner must arrange: venues, themes, flowers, food and refreshments, clothes, photography, honeymoons, and other aspects of the wedding. Most people have had some experience in one or more aspects of these facets of a wedding and most wedding planners have converted a job as a florist, caterer, photographer or travel agent into a larger and more exciting career as a wedding planner. If you haven't had one of these careers, perhaps you'll want to start off looking for a job as an assistant to a wedding planner, or a job in the events planning department of a non-profit organization. This will help you develop the skills you'll need to be a successful planner.