Do you have what it takes?

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You will need

  • A large enough venue reasonably near you. For an attendance of 1000 that's something roughly like:
    • Minimum of 10,000 square metres of field suitable for camping (that's equivalent to a square 100m on each side). Probably more than that, given the amount of live-in vehicles. Unfortunately, many venues with fields won't allow camping on them at all.
    • 1000 square metres of gym space,
    • 250 parking spaces.
  • A team. BJC is not a one-person job. There are people around who can help with various aspects of it, if you can bring them on board: site management, pre-reg and the public show have been done by the same three people in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Even if you outsource all of that, there is still more left to do than one person can reasonably do on their own. Unless you have superpowers.
  • Time. Running a BJC is a big time commitment. Realistically, other things in your life are going to slip during that time. Husbands, wives, partners and children can get the short end of the stick. It is possible to run a BJC and hold down a full time job at the same time... but only just. If your kids are on site during the event, even with a full time babysitter they will inevitably require a lot of your attention, which can make things very difficult. Oh, and someone on the team needs to be able to make phone calls during office hours.
  • Budget skills. You are essentially running a small business with a turnover of appoximately £65,000 (based on 2014). If you are going to be pushed for time or are not completely comfortable with budgets then find someone else who is to be your treasurer. As lead organiser the budget is your responsibility but this doesn't mean you have to be the one noting every registration and invoice or reconciling the bank account. If you are 100% happy with being, essentially, the Chief Financial Officer then feel free to do that but if you aren't then it is much better for you (and your BJC) to find someone else who is, who will report to you. If there is no-one in your existing team who is comfortable in that role then look at the Who can help? page or put out a call on Facebook, twitter or Juggling Edge.
  • Time management skills. If everything in your life is normally completed in a panic at the last minute, you can only run a BJC if you have a strong and trusted right hand person who is able to plan time for you and keep things moving.
  • People skills. If you're used to being successful in life by working hard yourself, brilliant! - but that's not enough. Have you the skills to find a team of volunteers and get them to work successfully together? Do you have the strength of mind to be the boss?