Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest ones. Event planning is a complicated process that can easily get out of hand, with deadlines, projects, follow-ups, and countless other minutiae overwhelming your team.

That’s why event planner Kelli White turns to checklists to keep everything under control and to enhance her own productivity. In a post for Event Manager Blog, White provides some details about how you can build checklists for every aspect of event planning.

And you don’t have to go it alone. White recommends revealing your checklist to the world to increase its effectiveness.

“You may already be a member of an event-planning association or part of a LinkedIn group where many other planners are available and willing to help you,” she writes. “You could make it a collective effort and review each other’s event documents. Collaborating like this is a great way to build your relationships in the industry and expand your knowledge as a planner.”

As with any process, it’s essential to review your checklist after every occasion for which you use it.

“Be sure to look at what went well and what can be improved in the future,” White recommends. “With each event, your checklists will become more helpful and integral to you and your team.”

Bookmark of the Day

Kerri Karvetski, an online-campaign and social media adviser, has put together a handy list of Twitter chats, tied to everything from education to health to the arts. Check it out on Kivi’s Nonprofit Communications Blog.

Other Good Reads

We link to SocialFish‘s Jamie Notter and Maddie Grant pretty regularly, so we’re eager to dive into their new book, When Millennials Take Over. It debuts at SXSW and in physical form next month.

Still dragging your feet on Instagram? Digiday investigates how the New York Times is leveraging the wildly popular social network, which may inspire you to take the leap.

Unlock the secrets of crowdfunding with tips from Kickstarter cofounder Yancey Strickler, which he shared in an interview with Inc.

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