Ways to Practise Celebrancy Techniques at Home

Becoming a celebrant is a fulfilling career choice that allows you to mark life’s significant moments for clients. Whether you’re aspiring to officiate weddings, funerals, or other ceremonies, honing your celebrancy skills is essential. We are here to support you on your journey to being a world class celebrant and so, have put together a list of ideas about how you can develop and improve your skills in your spare time. 

You can practise these skills before, during or after your training - and even throughout your careers!

Creative Writing

Celebrants use their creativity to produce beautiful scripts for ceremonies - a skill you hone when training with ICPC. To widen your vocabulary and become a more confident writer, you can practise something called ‘free writing’, where you pen any words and thoughts to paper, allowing yourself to explore new imagery, metaphor and beautiful words you might one day use in scripts. You can also read and try your hand at poetry, or keep a reflective journal. 

Sometimes, ICPC offers its members creative writing workshops, so once you have trained with us, you can develop your writing skills even further. 

Practise Public Speaking

We know that speaking in public can be daunting, especially if you have never done it before. But it is an essential part of being a Celebrant and, as with anything, the more you do it, the better you will become. You can start by delivering speeches using a smartphone or webcam. Watch the recordings to identify areas for improvement, such as pacing, tone, and body language. Take note of what works well and where you can make adjustments. You can also try practising in front of a mirror, or if you are feeling brave, in front of friends and family. 

Once you feel your skills are refined, you could offer to deliver a speech at an event, such as a work conference or wedding reception. This will give you more confidence and courage going forward. 

Learn About Grief

There’s plenty of practicalities to learn when becoming a Celebrant. But wider learning can be more theoretical, such as understanding different models and experiences of grief. You will, in your career, come across families who are bereaved and who express their grief in complex ways. The more you know about grief and loss, the more prepared you will feel dealing with sad and complicated situations. You can read our blog here to get started. You can also talk to friends who have been bereaved, listen to their experiences especially throughout a funeral process or in their dealings with a funeral celebrant in the past. Their story could be a learning point for you to develop on. 

Offer To Be A Friend’s Celebrant

If you feel ready, you can put your celebrancy skills into practise by writing and delivering a real ceremony. If you have a friend who is getting married, or who is having a baby naming ceremony for their child, you could offer your services for free. You will be adding a personal touch to the ceremony, given that you are known to the family, plus saving them on a celebrant fee they’d have otherwise paid. In return, you get a real life customer (and testimonial) to begin your portfolio and real world experience. 

We are here to support you every step of the way in your celebrancy career. Even if you have not yet trained with us yet, there are steps you can take to refine your skills and give yourself the best chance of future success. 

If you feel ready to embark on formal training with us, head over to our residential training page and book your space today.