By Susan Friedmann

With the umpteen details meeting and event planners need to handle, there are bound to be mistakes made, and maybe even heads that roll. To make certain that yours isn't one of them, I've put together ten of the most common meeting blunders to help you learn from your counterparts.

1. Fail to plan:  Fail to plan and you're laying yourself open for disaster. There are far too many pieces of the puzzle that need to be put together for you to just wing it, or pay lip service to a plan. Vow to be as thorough and meticulous as possible. Check and recheck details. Discuss it with people not involved in the business to get outsider opinions, ideas and thoughts. Create checklists and checklists of checklists. Cover all your bases. The more thorough you are, the less chance of failure, and more probability of success.

2. Neglect contingencies:  Another aspect of your planning process involves developing contingency plans. Unfortunately, the chances are pretty high that something you planned for won't necessarily go as arranged. So what's your backup? If you don't have one, all your original plans could be destroyed in an instant and you'll be scrambling to put a second strategy into operation. The best idea, have a Plan B ready "in the wings" just in case you need to use it.

3. Fall short of checking references:  It's one thing having a gut-feeling about someone, it's another checking if they're as good as they say they are. Yes, it will take some extra time to check references, but I believe it's well worth it. Why take the chance of spoiling your important event with a supplier that either let's you down at the last minute, or that supplies you with second-rate equipment, or poor quality service.

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