Wedding Planning, Part XIII

Perhaps one of the greatest challenges when planning a wedding is getting the groom involved. Of course, let's be honest here, most of the wedding planning work is made much easier by the groom's absence. But in some cases he absolutely must be involved, such as renting a tuxedo... selecting a best man... and taste testing the beer, wine, and other spirits that will be served during the reception. So if you are finding it particularly difficult to get the groom involved in the wedding planning process, then try motivating him with some of the suggestions listed below.

First, try to bride him. Now in this particular case, I doubt bribing him with money will get you very far. (Unless of course, you're marrying Ebenezer Scrooge...) But if you can identify something else that he wants and bribe him with that, it should be a great motivator. For example, most brides put their grooms on a fairly strict pre-wedding diet of spinach salads, pitifully petite chicken breasts, and glasses of club soda with lime which are then falsely advertised as some sort of dessert. So if you are a bride who put your groom on such a diet, consider bribing him with potato chips and diet soda. He'll get to eat normally again, and you'll get a groom who is motivated to go tuxedo shopping.

Second, offer to move the wedding date back to accommodate for his procrastination. Of course, you're not actually going to move the wedding date. That's a lot of extra work and frustration. No, the purpose of making this offer is the scare your groom into becoming involved. Let's be honest here – your groom is already sick and tired of talking about wedding plans. And the very thought of pushing the wedding date back and having to listen to yet another month or two of wedding planning talk should scare your groom into getting involved now to save himself the agony later.

And finally third, trick him into getting involved. You remember when you were a child and your parents told you to jump into the car because they were taking you to Disney World, only to find out that “Disney World” was code for the dentist? Well, if your groom refuses to become involved, then trick him into it. It might surprise you just how many grooms never realize that “We're going to wing-night at Hooters” actually means “We're going wedding ring shopping at Kay.”

I hope these tips have helped. And until next week I wish you good luck in all your wedding planning!