Meet Ryan Marston: Owner & Lead Event Planner of Organized Occasions

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ryan Marston and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ryan, do you have some perspective or insight you can share with us on the question of when someone should give up versus when they should keep going?
As a small business owner, I think I ask myself this question at the start of each year: should I keep this going, or should I take a step back? I don’t really like the term “giving up” because it makes it sound like you are quitting. You’re defeated. If I ever take a “step back” from wedding planning, it won’t be because I feel defeated (at least, I certainly hope not!). I think it will be moreso because my priorities will shift as my family continues to grow. Being a wedding planner takes up a lot of your weekends, which is time that could be spent with my family building memories. My family is small right now, and my one daughter is still very young. I feel like I still have the time and energy to invest in my business and in our sweet clients on the level that I think they both deserve. Whenever that changes, and when (and if!) I feel as though I don’t have the time or energy or joy to invest anymore, that is the moment I may need to step back. Right now, this business still feeds my soul and gives me purpose so I am excited for what lies ahead!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
In my “professional story”, there are a number of individuals who have supported me personally and Organized Occasions as a business. I started this journey back in 2008 as an intern with Event Perfect (owned by Lisa Milko, who is still a mentor today). I then moved over to Park Tavern to work in sales and as an in-house event coordinator. That position certainly catapulted me into the industry and helped me to form relationships with so many vendors, many of whom I am still close friends with today. Some folks who stand out to me as being particularly helpful in pushing me forward (especially during the early years): Lauren Blaska, Laura Burchfield, Berlin Onumonu, Julie Coffin, Kristen Alexander, Wynne Bolton, Alea Moore, Laura Iarocci, Anna Warner, Caroline Knuetz, Hannah Harris, Emily Walls, my aunt Carolyn, and of course my sweet husband, Bobby.