If we're not moving forward, we're moving backwards. Standing still isn't a state that exists.

Welcome to another month in the life of weddings and celebrant life, and another episode of your favourite celebrant-related monthly email, this one. I (Josh) am writing this in a vegetarian and vegan cafe on Hawaii's Big Island, a cafe I've been to a few times now, proving that even this carnivore can change.

This brings me to the theme of this month's email: change.

Six links for you to start the week with, and they're all about the inevitable change around us. May you be blessed as you acknowledge that change is the only constant, and you learn about how to dance with the change instead of fighting it.

⚖️ We need to update and change the Marriage Act

This month we're collecting submissions from celebrants like you, so we can take a unified front to the Commonwealth Government and have the Marriage Act of 1961 - marriage legislation that's over sixty years old and dictates how we do our job, but also, how our communities marry - changed. Marriage equality was important, and we've achieved that, now we need to address the rest of the act that needs a scrub-up.

Our initial thoughts are detailed in this article, but now we're asking for your thoughts. Email them in and we'll take it to the AGD.

Later this month we're meeting with the Marriage Celebrants Section of the AGD office and we'd love to table your thoughts there.

📸 Celebrants, we've been hearing from wedding vendors about you

For fifteen years I've been getting feedback on other celebrants from my wedding vendor friends, so this last week I compiled many of their thoughts into a helpful guide on how to be a great team player. Sharing the blog post on Instagram challenged quite a few of you, thanks for your comments, but I stand by what I've written.

I've added an introduction and a video to the original post because I received so much negative feedback, but I have not edited or changed what I originally posted despite the negative feedback.

Over the past month photographer and videographer friends have commented on how celebrants have been too busy filming a ceremony moment instead of creating the ceremony; other comments on celebrants taking over the family photos or insisting on there being group photos when there were none planned; one celebrity photographer commented how celebrants make comments about getting the couple to kiss again because the photographer missed it.

Anyhow, read the article, and if it applies to you then let's work together on change, and if it doesn't apply to you then congratulations, you're already doing a great job!

🦾 Artificial intelligence is going to change your celebrancy practice

AI is going to change the way we market our businesses, the way we are found by couples, the way they contact us, and the way we create ceremonies, and the most exciting and scary part is that we are barely even aware of how much things will change yet, it's still day zero. [Read]

🏡 Will 'Marry From Home' change how we marry in Australia?

Stephanie asks about how the new business 'Marry From Home' is changing how we marry in Australia.

💾 Not having a backup will change your day for the worse

I spilled whisky on my MacBook and lost ten days' worth of work. Change your backup strategy, or if you don't have one, get one, so a change of liquid's location doesn't change your joy.

🏁 A resource for new celebrants

We've developed a resource that's easy for you to share when someone asks how to change from having some boring job to become a wedding celebrant. Send them to "become a celebrant dot a, u" or https://becomeacelebrant.au/

✅ OPD is ready for you

You hopefully got an email about the 2023 OPD workbooks and tests being available and ready on the Marriage Celebrants portal now. Our best advice is to change your plans for the day and do it right now, because it saves having to remember to do it later. Mark and leave this email unread until you've done it as a reminder!

🌎 Prospective marriage visa professional development

If you're not sure what to do when a couple asks you for help with their prospective marriage visa, we have the professional development course for you! The best part of the Celebrant Institute PD is that once you've bought it you can do it when you like, at any time, and you can revisit it forever. Our PD is designed to help people change their business state, to improve and develop.

That's another monthly email from the Celebrant Institute from Josh here in Hawaii for another five days before we head to Paris, and Sarah in Melbourne.

If you're a paid Celebrant Institute member, you join the almost 5% of Australian celebrants that we are proud to help and represent, remember that we are at your beck and call for all marriage law and celebrancy practice and business questions and help at celebrant.institute/ask.

You are enjoying another Celebrant Institute production and you're receiving this email because you're a celebrant. If you aren't a celebrant then I don't know how you ended up here. If you've been forwarded this update and you'd like to subscribe for free, you can do that here.