pingpong

Hosting and events

Make a birthday-party run sheet

A run sheet lists who does what and when. Give the time, venue, guest count, the birthday person's age and who is helping, so the schedule matches your actual day.

A text to start with

Make a run sheet for a 70th birthday lunch on a Saturday, 1pm to 5pm, at a rented hall for 35 guests. Setup starts at 11am. [Sister] is running food, I'm greeting guests and managing the cake moment, and [friend] is handling cleanup. A catered buffet arrives at 12:30pm and a slideshow starts at 2pm. Flag anything that overlaps.

Example request. Change the details to fit your situation.

What to check in the run sheet

Look for gaps between tasks and for anyone assigned two jobs at the same moment. A buffet arriving at 12:30 leaves only half an hour before guests sit down, which is thin if the caterer runs late. Check the cake moment against the hall's noise or music rules, and make sure cleanup does not begin while guests are still expected. Change any task that depends on someone who has not confirmed.

Turning the draft into a working document

Share the draft with your helpers and ask each one to confirm their tasks. Send back any changes to timing, staffing or the hall's layout so the schedule can be revised. Print the final version or save a screenshot for the day itself.