Planning to host a dinner party or coordinating a group outing? While not professional event planners, we do host a lot of parties and group events and wanted to share our thoughts on the art of event prep. We break down the steps for before, during and after an event - scheduling, budget, managing dietary restrictions, facilitating conversation, accounting for flaky people, late people, etc. We also talk about the role of the guest - what to bring to a party and ways to reciprocate even if you don't want to plan your own party.