Shortlist Agency

Creating Event Experiences

Shortlist Agency, headquartered in New York City, was created by Toni Short to deliver imaginative and forward-thinking EVENT experiences that drive maximum value for clients around the globe.

Why was it important for you to create Shortlist Agency?

With over 20 years of holding in house and freelance roles curating and producing events [at every budget level, for queens and presidents as well as associations and nonprofits] three things became abundantly clear to me. One, I was born to do this job. It was in my DNA to create, organize and lead. Two, more often than not, events seemed to attract a high level of stress by all those involved. And three, I knew in my heart that it didn’t have to be that way. I knew that it was possible to participate in the process of creating and executing high quality experiences for clients and guests alike in a more joyful and rewarding way. One that was less stressful, exhaustive, and nasty.

So, that’s what I did. I stepped off the corporate wheel and created a company that offered a foundation for myself and others to work in ways that honored everyone for who they were and where they were at, transparency and truth over pandering and posturing, and most of all a space that fostered and nurtured curiosity and cosmic collaboration.

What’s your recipe for a calm and joyful event world?

Truth. Truth cuts through the ego. The ego’s job is to keep us safe so it feels important. Its survival depends on it. As counterintuitive as it sounds, the ego needs negative situations to arise so it can have something to do, something to worry about, or something to change. Which is often why events can seem chaotic or riddled with moments of anxiety and unnecessary outbursts. Imagine a bunch of egos running wild, like Gremlins eating after midnight, set to derail the best laid plans in a nanosecond just so they can be the heroes to fix everything.

Trust me though, being able to own my truth and bring a different attitude to my work, took a lot of practice, and that practice took many forms. First and foremost, my own self development and growth work to develop a keen sense of awareness and unwavering trust in my voice and my abilities. My commitment to operate only in the present moment, offering those I interact with my full presence,. Aand also the literal practice that comes from each and every moment something goes wrong in the planning and execution of the events themselves.

In a way, it’s inevitable that things will go wrong in the world of events, but what I began to notice was how my reactions and behaviors in those particular moments contributed to whether the moment became stressful or not. If we are honest with ourselves we can usually widen our perspective to see the moment differently and even see how we might have contributed to that situation. We made an assumption, we didn’t ask a question we probably could have, we allowed someone else’s stress to influence how we speak to others, or we simply didn’t know what we didn’t know and in turn, something went wrong. So choosing kindness, compassion, empathy, humor and forgiveness (for ourselves and others) in those moments, helps shifts the energy and takes us out of the ego’s playground and back into a state of truth. Practice that over and over and you are guaranteed to create entirely different experiences for everyone, and change the trajectory of the moment and, especially, the event!

What is it about the micro and macro world of events that you love so much?

My upbringing, especially tools I learnt from my mother, honed my sense of practicality and problem solving skills. Being able to think on my feet, create something from nothing, MacGyver a plane out of an elastic band, a toilet roll and a bobby pin were always part of how I saw the world and how I could (or had to) participate in it.

At the same time, I have always been a dreamer. Spouting streams of ideas that weren’t “normal”, getting lost in moments that transcended reality and curating environments that allowed myself and others around me to feel safe and in turn create and express.

Mix these together, with 20 something years of street smarts, and you have this visionary style of thinking that can instantly see the bigger picture and the end result especially in terms of how guests would want to feel at an event or what feelings they take away from it. Add in this deep sense of pragmatism, that allows me to concurrently see and understand every tiny step -that is needed to bit by bit create the world clients are looking to immerse their guests in. Whether that be an internal conference to rally the troops or a press tour to engage the press and public.

How do you balance delivering everyone's ideas, needs and wants?

A doula is trained to advise, inform, and offer emotional and physical comfort to a mother before, during, and after the birth of her child.

In the world of events and production, my role is one of a creative doula. Moving a project and its people through the creative process from conception to execution. Event planning, for me, has always been more than the act and function of logistics. While the details are exquisitely important it's often in the invisible realms, between the spreadsheets and the timelines and the powerpoint decks, that the event discovers teething problems, the “family” imposes their desires on the new parents or the “baby” is uncomfortable from having gas and needs a gentle pat on the back to let it out. Bringing back a state of calm or flow.

Along with all these fun baby analogies, [each serving a function and are skill sets in their own right] to balance the role of delivering everyone’s needs in a creative project, for me, is about offering my unconditional presence to understand and acknowledge everyone’s perspective from the get go, and ensuring everyone continues to feel seen throughout the life cycle of the project.

In the moments where the project and its participants become out of balance, or there's a conflict or behavioral sign that someone doesn’t feel seen, again, I tap into the truth of that moment (by noticing body language or inserting curiosity & deep listening) to then garner the root cause of the imbalance and offer insight or alternative perspectives so all parties can tune back into why they are here (literally) and what’s in the best interest of the “baby” i.e. the project.

What does the future hold for Shortlist Agency?

I've always said the Olympics or the Oscars! But maybe it's more about what I don't know that is around the corner. Something I have learnt on this journey of life is to dance with the delight of anticipation. Often what comes from letting go of the wheel is that element of surprise which far outweighs what our minds could even imagine. I have always been guided to where I am meant to be, so… bring it on and watch this space!

Visit Shortlist Agency