Last week I talked about how I’m already thinking about the fall and it’s totally true on a number of levels! A lot of work goes into putting together not only educational programs but all the traveling that comes along with it! Now, I’m not workaholic, but I’m a realist- THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR IS COMING! While I encourage all to relax and take in the sun, I also want you to start thinking about fall programming!

Having spent some of my time in college on the program planning board, I know how stressful planning events can be! My goal as a speaker has always been to provide the most stress free process possible- from the first e-mail to the final bow. Enough about me, here are some things that I hope will help you plan your upcoming fall events!

My Calendar Fills As Fast As Yours!
Don’t be fooled by my tour calendar! Behind the scenes I am working with school administrators and organizations to plan and schedule events. Get in touch sooner rather than later to get the ball rolling on your event! Have the perfect date in mind? Let me know and I’ll place a hold on it. These holds are left in place for up to two weeks while you finalize details! After that, all you need to secure the event date is a signed contract confirming the event!

Work Together To Save!
One of the biggest costs when it comes to booking assemblies comes from the travel fees. Speakers do the best they can to travel as cheap as possible but we can only do so much when it comes to travelling to certain areas of the country. One thing I always recommend is communicating with other schools within your district as well as surrounding districts to book programs together. This is why planning ahead is key! The sooner you have a date in mind, the sooner you can plant the seed in the minds of your fellow educators. If you are able to work together to book multiple programs in the same time frame, you’ll see your costs decrease!

Get Creative With Funding!
There are two mindsets when it comes to the world of speaking- you can charge more and work less or work more and charge less. I’m in the charge less category. I love to be on the road, educating as many students as possible. That in mind, there are still costs involved (see above re: Travel)! There are many ways to secure funding for educational programs! Rather than typing them all out here, you can visit the Tips for Funding Your Assembly page of my web site for all sorts of ideas!

Let’s Talk About #3
Now that you’ve checked out my Tips for Funding Your Assembly, let’s talk about number three on that list. You wouldn’t believe the number of Awareness Events/Months there are! September alone is Back to School Month, Campus Safety Month and hosts Suicide Prevention Week. There are a number of ways to create something more out of your assembly experience. Please feel free to take a look at the 2013 Prevention Programming Planning Calendar on my web site for ideas!

Let’s Work Together
My job is not only to provide you with the best assembly/workshop possible, but to make sure that it is everything that you hoped for and more! I mentioned it before, I am a veteran of event-planning and I want to help make yours the best is can be! Whether you’re looking for just a simple assembly or hoping to create a weeklong event for your school, let’s work together! Please feel free to e-mail (info@joshgunderson.com) me at anytime to get started!

Until next time,
Josh

Josh Gunderson is an award-winning speaker specializing in Internet Safety and Cyberbullying. For more information on Josh and his educational programs please visit www.HaveYouMetJosh.com