I’ve spoken about large events and I’ve looked at the question of how big is too big. Now I want to look at the other extreme and ask the question, “Can a party be too small?” I don’t think so, unless there’s only one attendee. Like the song says, “One is the loneliest number.” Think about it. Just about every night of the week, couples sit down to an intimate dinner and celebrate some kind of event thinking three’s a crowd. For them, two is the absolute perfect number. But let’s be realistic, and consider a children’s birthday party. Do you really need to have 8, 10, 12, 15 or more to make it a special event? Can you have a special celebration with only three or four? Absolutely! Ask yourself this. Isn’t it really about quality time and not about the number of people? Mom, dad, child and siblings put everything else aside, forget about all the regular routines and spend some quality time together doing something really special with the guest of honour. This is often the stuff of special memories that will last well beyond the silly gifts that make up so many birthday parties. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not advocating either a minimalist approach or a super-sized approach. My message is very simple – use the right-sized approach! Regardless the nature of the celebration, consider the following: • Is this a regularly scheduled celebration like a birthday party or is this a once-in-a-lifetime milestone or life-cycle event? • Will your budget support your vision of the event? If you get these two things right, you’ll be on-track for a right-sized and memorable event.