by Michael Carlin

Created on: February 11, 2008

Hosting a great party is like any other business activity, it usually boils down to who you know. However, if Snoop Dogg is not in your Rolodex do not despair; just follow a few simple tips to make sure you and your guests have a night to remember. Firstly, before any guests are invited make sure you know what kind of event you want to throw. There are three basic types of parties each with their pros and cons:

1. The Dinner-Party: A classier event for those with exclusive taste in music, food or people. These can range from pot-luck style office to huge banquet affairs. You can expect to strengthen your contact base and maybe make a few new friends, but don't expect any raging good times. All you need for this party is food, decent lighting, round table seating, wine and a lounge play list.

2. The Dance-Party: The classic party, ranging from the more mild birthdays to huge frat-like events. This party is great for meeting new people, having a blast. However, this party also requires the most preparation and administration. People usually have trouble throwing dance-parties for two reasons, either a lack of party goers or a lack of appropriate venue. If a lack of party goers is a problem then you must focus on throwing party types 1 and 3 to build up your brand name. Luckily, the venue problem is much easier to solve. Besides having a great dance play list, three rules must be followed. As party master P Diddy said, you just need three things for a party: alcohol drinking, dim lighting, and heat.

Sufficient alcohol is easy to come by. You always want to have one fruity punch like mix to get party goers in the mood. My personal favorite is jungle juice- a cocktail of frozen fruit juice concentrate (preferably a mix of sweet fruits like mango, orange, apple or strawberry) and vodka, rum or both. Of course adding more options to the drinks list only will improve the party, fun shots like Jager or sake bombs will add a lot to the mix.

Proper lighting is an essential if dancing is to occur. Most people are self-conscious and do not like to dance if they think other people are watching. So when it comes time to kick the party into high gear the normal lights must be turned off. Blacklights, redlights, spinning lights, lasers and other colorful (but dim) lighting will only add more to the party but they become more essential as the number of people in the venue increases.

Most importantly is the heat rule, if the people in the venue are cold their temperature will be

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>