The Best Man is responsible for a variety of tasks for the wedding, not just his best man speech. Because they can vary, be sure to talk to the Groom about what you should do. The Best Man probably has most of his miscellaneous duties before the actual wedding. One of the most important is being a source or moral support for the groom.

Your most important job, however, is to just provide a good source of moral support for the Groom. Even though weddings are supposed to be blissful and relaxed, they can be overwhelming. So sometimes you need to be a Best Friend before the Best Man. You want to provide a good system of reinforcement for your Groom and help make his special day even better. The wedding planning process will also give you a good opportunity to find material for your best man wedding speech.

Generally your pre-wedding responsibilities include picking a wedding date and location of the wedding. Most of the time, this includes the input of the Bride and the Groom, as well as the Best Man and the Maid of Honor. When trying to pick a date, be sure to pick it far enough in advance. You need to keep non-local family and friends in your plans, as they will want to have enough time to get off work and get less expensive plane tickets. Picking a location is also important. This ties very closely with the date. You want to avoid a New York wedding during the winter, to avoid forcing the Groom to wear a Parka and snowshoes. Unless the wedding is indoors, you want to keep the date and the location in mind.

If the Bride and Groom have already decided on a location for the wedding, make sure you have a physical address available for people who aren’t local.

If the Bride and Groom have a someone special in mind that they want to perform the service, be sure to talk to him in advance to see when he is available, or look around for a clergyman that is available on the wedding date.

This will eliminate any last minute panic and careless mistakes, and will give you an opportunity to practice your best man speech. And remember to practice for your big best man speech.