Six Conversations to Have After You Get Engaged

It’s engagement season here in the US and that means more couples are getting ready to tie the knot. I remember when I first got engaged to my amazing husband, Craig. I was excited, nervous, a bit overwhelmed and elated all at once. Then it came time to plan the wedding. What to do first? When? How? So many questions and so much to discuss. If you’re newly engaged, this post is for you. Don’t stress if getting started comes with a sense of pressure. It’s all going to be great. Just start your season of wedding planning off right with these six conversations to have after you get engaged. Do this and your wedding planning process is off and running with a solid foundation for success.

1. Tell Your Friends and Family: This seems like an obvious one, but in all the excitement, you may forget an important relative or two. Do a quick run through of your phone book and make sure everyone that should know ahead of the internet gets that visit, phone call or personal message with the good news.

2. Then Tell Social Media: Only once you’ve alerted your closest friends and family, can you tell the world. It’s hard to keep quiet but important that those loved ones who are important to you feel honored and respected in this special time. It’s good practice – you’ll be managing personalities and dispensing information many times over the next many months.

3. Get Real About the Budget: Talk to your fiancé and any family members contributing to the budget. Don’t start location shopping until you have a real understanding of what you can spend. Then your search won’t seem so overwhelming. By default, the scope will be narrowed based on budget and then you can start to get excited about spots.

4. Count Your Guests: Once you have an idea of budget, get a grasp of who you want to spend that budget on. The bigger the guest count, the more tables, chairs, centerpieces, meals, drinks and so on you will need. Be realistic about how many you can host for the type of event you want to have and formulate your guest list.

5. Discuss What Kind of Wedding You Want: Do you want a destination wedding? Something small and casual? Large and formal? Food-focused or entertainment-centered? Snowy in the Colorado winter or among the wildflowers in spring? There are no wrong answers here but it’s important to discuss with your partner about the type of wedding you want and what each of your priorities are so you can honor them both and compromise if needed.

6. Talk Timing: Do you have similar ideas of when you want to get married and in what season? Start to think about location, seasonality and time to plan to help narrow the scope and make sure you’re both on the same page. Even consider your jobs and when you can and can’t take time off to wed and honeymoon. Then consider the location – if it’s a destination wedding, what season works best where you’ll be going? Does the calendar align with your ideas? That also tells you how quickly you need to jump into action on the rest of your planning…

If you and your fiancé can start with these six conversations to have after you get engaged, you’re wedding planning process just got that much easier! Open communication is the key to most major decisions in life and wedding planning is no exception. Then, once those real talks are had, it’s time to have some fun and call a wedding planner!

Photo by James + Schulze.