The Modern Bride’s Guide to Wedding Planning with a Busy Career

HAIRSTYLIST – Hair by Sabrina Lynn

For hard-working professionals, wedding planning can be a distinctly busy season in their lives. After all, you’ve got an incredible career that you love, friends eager to celebrate, and you’re finally getting to prepare for the future with your soulmate.

Whether you’ve been wedding planning for 2 weeks or 2 months, you’ve probably heard that it can feel like a full-time job. With vendor meetings, wedding cake tastings, and locating the perfect venue, even the most organized professional can get in over their head.

Whether you’re working from home, a local coffee shop, or staying in-office, it’s important to find a strategy that keeps you sane. If you haven’t quite figured out how to balance work and wedding planning, we’d love to help make your life a little easier!

Prioritize

As a career-focused couple, you’ve got plenty of experience with prioritizing tasks throughout the workday. While wedding planning can feel like a completely different world, you’ll find that this skill is fully transferrable!

When making your wedding planning to-do lists, we suggest working on the most important tasks first. By ranking items in the order that they need to be completed, you can direct your attention to time-sensitive tasks (choosing a date, finding a wedding venue, etc.) first, then complete others at your convenience.

Design + Rentals by Mercer and Smith Events

Get a Head Start

When it comes to planning a wedding, you’ll want to make sure that you begin doing your research as early as possible. Waiting till the last minute often leads to extra stress, whereas planning ahead allows you to maintain more control of your timeline.

Most wedding vendors are booked 9-12 months in advance, so it’s suggested to stay within this general range of time. If you want the best of the best for your special day, we encourage you to give yourself plenty of time to research, meet with, and book your dream team.

Dedicate time specifically for planning

Think you’ve perfected the art of multi-tasking? Think again. While it may be tempting to work on wedding planning during all those captivating Zoom meetings, this can actually add to your sense of feeling overwhelmed.

Instead, set aside a specific time for wedding planning throughout the week (ideally, 30 – 60 – minute sessions). Not only does this give you the freedom to tend to work tasks during the day, but you can also be fully present when spending time with your future spouse.

Share the love

If you want the dream wedding but don’t have time to DIY, now’s the time to lean on your support system.  This will give you more time to focus on work responsibilities without having to compromise on your wedding vision.

We suggest asking your partner and wedding party first, as they will already be involved in the planning process. From there, you can ask close friends and family for suggested wedding venues, local vendors, and any other assistance you need.

Over-communicate with vendors

Speaking of wedding vendors, here is another tip that will help you to find a better work-life balance. When meeting with them, it is essential to share as much information as possible, making your needs and expectations known from the start.

Being clear and explicit with your vendors will save you so much time in the long run, as it simplifies both their job and yours. Rather than spending the workday taking phone calls and sending clarifying emails to vendors, you can remain fully invested in the projects that you’re most passionate about.

Research all-inclusive venues

Finding the perfect venue is one of the most important wedding planning tasks to check off your to-do list. There is a wide variety of venues for you two to choose from, but with the right location, your wedding day will feel like an incredible adventure.

All-inclusive venues can make the planning process easier by providing multiple services/vendors for a comprehensive price. In-house catering, florists, photographers, and DJs can provide a consistent experience that aligns with the venue’s style and branding.

Floral Arrangement by Garden + Grace

Take. a. break.

If you find yourself at work with a few minutes of downtime, you may see it as an opportunity to catch up on wedding planning. On the contrary, we encourage you to use your “free time” to rest, recharge, and decompress!

On your lunch break, we suggest eating outside so that you can enjoy the fresh air and soak up some much-needed vitamin D. Not only is this beneficial for your mental health, but it can help your body to maintain proper functions as well.

Wedding planning can be a difficult time for couples, as it can take up so much space in their everyday lives. For this reason, it’s important to take frequent breaks from planning, making time to connect with each other in fun, meaningful ways.

Consider hiring a wedding planner

If it’s within your wedding budget, we recommend hiring a professional planner or coordinator to keep things moving smoothly. You may be the queen of time management and organization, but even the most type A brides can use an extra hand now and then.

In addition to guiding you throughout the process, wedding planners also offer excellent resources to keep you two involved. A great planner knows that every wedding is totally unique, so they’ll go to great lengths to make sure that your vision is captured.

In Conclusion

Every engaged couple knows just how overwhelming wedding planning can be at times. For those who are deeply invested in their careers, this already busy time can quickly turn into a stress-inducing mess.

If you’ve been struggling to balance wedding planning with your job, this helpful guide should set you up for success. From crafting the seating chart to planning the sparkler exit, we want you to have a completely stress-free experience.

You two are preparing for the happiest day of your life, which should be an exciting time full of joy and anticipation. With these tips, you can excel at work, complete the wedding checklist, and still find the time to remember why you fell in love in the first place.

Want more tips to de-stress during wedding planning? Treat yo’ self with this detailed guide:

Why Self-Care Should Be at the Top of Your Wedding Planning Checklist

Wedding Coordination by Kaitlyn Marie Events + Design

Wedding Venue – 1908 Grand located in Gainesville, Florida