Meeting planning placed 8th in U.S. News’ “Best Careers of 2010” report based on the Labor Department’s new job growth projections for 2008-2018. According to the report, the number of jobs planners hold is forecast to jump 16 percent, attributed to the growing importance of meetings to increasingly global companies. So add language skills to all the other requirements of this career choice, which already seems to require more multi-tasking than most others.

My career choice was shaped in high school, when I convinced the local newspaper to devote space on the opinion page one day a week to a teen-age voice. (I am thankful there was no Internet at the time and any copies are long buried in some microfiche files.) Writing about the business of meeting planning evolved from several experiences — some job related, others of a more personal nature. I like to tell people that my interest in meeting planning began with planning birthday parties for my nieces, nephews and son. Every year, every party required a new theme, a location, trinkets, food and beverages, invitations, activities, sometimes music and entertainment, cleanup crews and more, depending on the event. One year it was a pirate hunt with maps to a treasure chest buried in the sand. (We were living on an island at the time and the “treasure” was collected from a Dollar store and a second-hand shop.) Another year it was a wedding party for a 7-year-old niece who for some reason was enamored with the idea of a wedding back then but not now at 20 something. We all had fun, learned some lessons and made memories. Terrific ROI.

There are so many ways to get involved in the business of planning meetings, conferences, conventions and social events. It’s truly a multi-faceted industry. While job requirements vary, organizational and creative skills are at the top of the list.

To learn more, visit the U.S. Department of Labor.