RSVP | Did You Send Your RSVP?

I absolutely enjoy hosting parties. Being a host gives me an opportunity to invite family members, friends, acquaintances, and any mix of people I would like to see come together. Each time I have hosted an event, I mail out invitations with rsvp cards included. Oddly enough, with each of the events I have hosted, there were multiple occurrences where people who mailed in a rsvp, did not show up. Conversely, there were people who did not mail in a rsvp, but did show up. With each occurrence, I was left pondering why I had not been given a reasonable notification.

RSVP stands for the French phrase répondez s'il vous plait, which translates as respond if it pleases you. By responding to the invitation, the host can count the number of heads who will attend, and make sure there are adequate accommodations. The host is also able to properly manage the budget they are working with. When a person replies back that they are attending the event, the host has to pay the event manager for that person’s head in the count. If that person does not show up, their absence creates a loss of money for the host. When a person does not reply back, but shows up to the event, the host has to either turn the person away, or make an unexpected payment to the event manager. In Blooming Impressions’ Social Etiquette session, we teach our participants some of the customary codes of polite behavior in society.

Share your thoughts on polite behaviors.