My First 2-Hour Cocktail Party

Are you looking to be the Connector in your community? To not sit around and wait for connection and friendship to walk into your life?

 

If you answered yes, we’re in the same boat. That’s why I hosted my first 2-hour cocktail party.

 

But it’s not your average party. It’s a crafted formula that brings people out of their shell and opens up conversations that fill the room.

 

If we’re anything alike, I hope my reflections on my first party and a quick glimpse at how you can do the same will push you outside your comfort zone (it sure did mine) and empower you to grow the community and circle you’ve always wanted to have.

 

Table of Contents
  1. What’s a 2-Hour Cocktail Party
  2. Party Preparation
  3. Party Time
  4. Key Takeaways
  5. Why I Will Host Again
  6. Conclusion

 

What’s a 2-Hour Cocktail Party?

The reason I got the courage to host my first cocktail party is because it was all outlined for me, step by step, in Nick Gray’s book – The 2-Hour Cocktail Party.

 

Where Nick dives into all of the juicy details, from the best days to host to his classic icebreakers that open up the room to new conversations.

 

While this blog isn’t a book review, here are my 3 golden nuggets I took away from this book and what really pushed me over the edge to hosting my first party.

  1. Kick ’em out at 2 hours…. But Why?
    • Have you ever been to a party that clearly lasted too long, the conversations dried up, and people were getting tired – we’ve all been there and sometimes even had to be the person that makes up the excuse to leave. We avoid all of that here, by setting a defined party time zone. You kick people out when they’re craving more and not at the end of the night once they’re begging you to end it.
  2. Fun Party Signs
    • The easiest way to guide people straight to your door is through engaging signs and directions. In my case, I placed little signs from the complex’s entrance all the way to my door and shoe rack.

 

3. No Dinner!
  • The goal of a 2-Hour Cocktail Party is to create a meaningful place for people to build relationships and have great conversations. We are not here to feed people. And truth be told, not a lot of great conversations happen when people are smacking on food.

Are you excited to host your first Cocktail Party? Great! Order the book here, and with this positive energy, go 3 weeks into the future and pick a 2-hour window on either Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday to host your first cocktail party.

 

By the time your book gets in, you’ve already committed and will start ramping up towards the big day.

 

Party Preparation

The name of the game is simplicity when it comes to setup – simple drinks & snacks, and enough name tags to slap on every surface around the house.

 

While I won’t dive into the WHOLE list (that’s what the book’s for), I’ll go over my little additions and some of the fun stuff I got along the way.

 

Food:

I kept snacks super simple – Grapes, Carrots, Hummus, Chips & Guac.

 

With my friend Nick bringing the Guac & Yotam serving up some of his homemade focaccia bread.

 

Drinks:

I bought a lot of drinks/mixers my first time around to really see what would stick, and I learned so much from it.

 

I got – Seltzer, Coca-Cola, Vodka (Svedka), White Rum (Bacardi), & Cranberry Juice.

 

I wanted to cater to both the sober & looking-to-get-tipsy friends. So I made a couple more things – Green Tea & 3 jars of some great syrups that elevated the whole bar.

 

I made two shrubs, one of them blueberry & the other blueberry & orange – Here’s the recipe

 

And the last & easiest to do was my lemon simple syrup.

Lemon Simple Syrup Recipe

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups water
1 Lemon
1 Cup sugar

Steps:

  1. Use a peeler to remove lemon rind, try to avoid the white part.
  2. Juice lemon and set aside.
  3. Boil Water and lemon rind for 5 minutes.
  4. Turn off heat, remove rind.
  5. Stir in sugar until dissolved.
  6. Stir in lemon juice.
  7. Let cool before refrigeration.

 

 

Once I had both the snacks & drinks, it was time to party, but we can’t forget some of the other small additions I made that helped bring this to life.

 

Supplies:

In the classic NICK party formula, the N stands for Nametags, so I bought the most reliable ones here.

 

Plus adding on some key stuff that will last through my whole career of hosting parties – Ice Bucket & Glass Carafes.

 

It may seem obvious, but make sure to have a corkscrew on hand for any wine bottles that show up on the table. (You can guess the disappointment in my guest’s face when I told him he couldn’t sip on the wine he brought)

To elevate your syrups, get some of these fancy bottles, it’s so worth it!

Your first party, is your most expensive party. After you buy all the supplies, it will last you for several parties to come.

 

Party Time

I zoomed out of work, anxiously watching the clock tick closer to my party at 6:45.

 

My first task, get ice and welp, QT was out so I went on a little bit of a hunt to find some more. Luckily, I struck gold ice, and got a bag just 5 minutes up the road.

 

After cranking down the road, I pulled into my apartment, with the table already set with bottled drinks & the bowls in the right spots (I highly recommend setting up your table/presentation the night before). All I had to do was throw all the food in the right bowls.

 

And after loading up the chip bowl, and stress eating almost half the bowl, I scrambled to freshen up and put my most fancy suit on….. Nope. Christmas overalls are more my style 😎.

With everything set up perfectly & an eager smile on my face, my first 2 core guests showed up. Both were assigned some crucial tasks. Nick: Bartender & Yotam: Mr. High-Five.

 

20 minutes passed by, and there were 9 people in my apartment. Name tags and drinks in full swing, I whip out my screaming chicken dog toy and grab the room’s attention.

 

Now the ICEBREAKER. I throw up a softball – asking the crowd to announce their 1. Name 2. What they did for work and 3. What their favorite breakfast food was.

 

This little icebreaker opened up the room with fun and personable answers. From some diabolical breakfast recipes to people who simply fast, it got people laughing and nodding their heads.

 

With the hardest part of the night done, we chatted and laughed until our next and even more challenging icebreaker.

 

Yet again, I grabbed the squeaky chicken and serenaded my guests with its graceful screams. Here we cranked the question up a notch – What has been a great piece of media you consumed in the past month that you would like to share (movie, tv show, book, podcast, song, magazine…)

 

But before… smile…. a group picture to keep this memory.

 

Then we went around the circle. The answers were all over, from a personal favorite podcast rec (How I Built This by Guy Raz) to a great article about Harry Styles’ marathon race and him wearing Tracksmith clothing.

 

Key Takeaways

  1. The first party is the most expensive party – After it, you have all the needed supplies for the next dozen parties to come, and you learn what snacks & drinks hit or don’t, narrowing down on your total spend before the party even starts.
  2. Invite & RSVP more people than you need. I ended up having 7 no-shows/day of dropouts, reducing my turnout to 11 friendly guests.
  3. People weren’t that hungry… I’m still snacking on the 2lbs of carrots while writing this blog (1 week after the party)
  4. Give a “time limit” for the Icebreaker answers before anyone ever goes. It shows we aren’t here to ramble on for minutes.

Why I Will Host Again

People love connection, so by simply opening up my home and a little bit of behind-the-scenes effort, I was able to help introduce and deepen connections. Both for my newer friends in Greenville and the people who’ve been here for a couple years.

 

This ability and skill is something I want to keep growing, and truly something I think I can excel at in my personal life and even career going forward.

Plus, hosting cocktail parties is a social hack.

 

When you’re immersed in your city, you meet so many great people every week. But it’s hard to deepen those connections through planning and going to coffee chats, especially when you’re meeting dozens of great people a week.

 

So the easiest and most impressive way to build those relationships? Host a party. After meeting your new friend, simply ask them if they’d like to be invited to your next cocktail party. Everyone loves to be invited, so boom, an easy way to turn a great but short conversation into a party appearance.

 

This little social hack will give me so much more confidence, not only to start conversations but to feel confident when asking people for their information. Because I’m providing value, not simply just trying to take their time.

 

Conclusion

 

Wherever you are, I challenge you to host your first 2-Hour Cocktail Party.

 

It will be a learning curve, and your first party will be the launch pad to so many other great parties down the road.

 

The key is to pick an evening 3 weeks in the future and commit (plus order the book).

 

If doing my first party taught me anything, it’s that connectors are in short supply. So be that friend in your community or city that builds connections and rooms that matter.

 

Peace Out!

 

At This Point In Time:

Age: 21

Location: Greenville, South Carolina

Job: Southern Tide