Towards being a more entertaining guest

Merlin — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 10:34:32 -0500

Joey's condenses some great tips on going from wallflower to party panda. Number one has always stood me in good stead:

"1. Be more of a host and less of a guest. Make introductions and make people more comfortable."

Totally. Not to get all Burning Man on you here, but any event will only be as good as the people who actively participate in it. People who arrive waiting to be entertained are dead weight, while those who do more than the minimum to make things happen can bring the place to life.

Good trick for house parties: deliberately leave off a few light party preparations so that early arrivers can hang out in the kitchen and help. Wouldn't you rather cut up carrots than stare at the clam dip feeling like a choad? Exactly.

Also, an old tradition at our house is to give gifts to the first 2 or 3 early arrivers. If you can go, "Hey! Here's a cheap bottle of wine and 'Travel Boggle!'" you make people feel more at ease. Then give 'em a knife, and put 'em to work.

”Towards being a more entertaining guest” was written by Merlin Mann for 43Folders.com and was originally posted on January 24, 2008. Except as noted, it's ©2010 Merlin Mann and licensed for reuse under CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. "Why a footer?"

Etiquette

Towards being a more entertaining guest