What's Floating Around Cloud 9? Week commencing 29 May 2017

Welcome to another week, this post is bought to you by a newbie, my name is Emma, I am currently at Cloud 9 helping out, getting some invaluable experience and knowledge from Paula and the rest of the amazing team! I am just about to go into my 4^th year of study at university, and somehow managed to flip my whole degree over in my 3^rd year deciding I no longer wanted to do a specialist PR degree I wanted to do what I enjoyed and have a go events and exhibition management! 

First event I ever organised was a tea party for my hostess badge at brownies, I baked and prepared food, made tea and coffee, all of this was a pretty big deal for a 7-year-old. Since then I have helped to organise my school prom which was a complete nightmare as Venue finding was almost impossible on such short notice during prom season! But it turned out well and we got a lovely location, despite the Olympic torch touring through Nottingham that day and many the roads we needed to get to the venue being closed, but we all got there in the end!
In the 3 years, I have attended Birmingham City University, I have had the chance to have a go at everything the media communication degree offers, such as: Print design and copy writing, PR, TV, photography, radio, marketing, events, new media and coding and some film making. I have done some of these things reluctantly, however, I am so grateful I’ve had these opportunities to try everything and know what I enjoy and am good at. It’s through these exploratory years I have stumbled into the world of events, right before it all starts to matter, for my final year of study! 

As long as I can remember I have always liked to plan, it doesn’t matter what for I always generate a plan of action, so naturally now my diary is my life. So understandably I’ve got my eyes and heart set on a career path with deep roots in planning ahead and being as organised as possible. Originally events was not the pathway I was going to take I wanted to study fashion communication at Nottingham Trent. After I reviewed all my options alongside my A-level results I decided the broad discipline of PR was probably a better fit with more diversity and potentially more opportunities long term. I really enjoy PR but since having a multitude of options to specialise the route of my degree I have ended up taking the path of events/exhibition management and visual design. 

One reason I have changed my mind is that Venue finding is a practice I have always found so interesting, understanding needs of the client to find the perfect space to bring your vision to life is so exciting to me. I am forever looking at hotels in various locations globally, either planning a holiday or a trip or simply being nosy to see what style and facilities they can offer. So, venue finding never feels like work to me when I get to research venues!

Much like the rest of the creative sectors the events industry is forever developing, utilising trends and evolving to fit with and use new media developments too. The opportunity to work in such a diverse environment is a challenge I will welcome with open arms!

The events industry has always sounded very glamourous, lots of travel, lots of meetings, having clients, it really does sound exciting. I now understand after experiencing it somewhat It may not always be glamorous and fun day to day, but the events industry is one which pushes you to challenge yourself. The more you get out of your comfort zone the better your work I find. You have to put so much more into the job, more research, more time, more understanding and ultimately it all leads to a better sense of achievement afterwards too.

 As a community #EventsProfs are so supportive and interconnected, there is competition but mostly companionship, that is a dynamic I wanted to be a part of!