CHAPTER 2

As in everything we are trying to achieve in life, the first step towards success is good preparation. Before deciding to include guardians in your sports activities and allow them to interact with their children in the framework of your FFS initiative, it is important to be well prepared and organized. Although this does not differ much from any other preparation process, when we are talking about FFS, things are somewhat sensitive and delicate. Don’t worry though! We are here to support you with a few tips:

• Define your goal & understand it – It is important for you -before anyone else- to realize why this FFS activity is really happening. It is not about winning. It is not about scoring. In fact, it has nothing to do with the game itself! It is about sharing, family bonding, entertaining, educating, learning, growing, communicating, cooperating, healing, developing. Define it, realize it, digest it. Believe in it! Support it! And only then are you ready to share it with your FFS team and sweep them away into this amazing FFS experience!
• Explore the challenges – It’s always better to know what to expect and be prepared in advance! Before jumping into this journey, take a minute to consider the challenges you might face along the way: from finding your participants to dealing with unexpected situations on the spot, make a list of all the challenges you might face and prepare a solid plan to effectively deal with them!
• Profile your target group – The target groups of your FFS activity are definitely diverse and can be quite demanding. Make sure you understand the specificities of each group (children and their guardians), as well as the tricky points of their mutual interaction. Build their profile and get to know them before you even meet them in person!
• Build your structure – There is nothing more helpful than a concrete and well designed plan. It is therefore crucial that you design a concrete and detailed plan for your activity, a step-by-step structure and that you ensure that everyone involved in it knows exactly what they are doing. This will help you avoid any mis-steps and tricky parts of the process!
• Prepare for some conflict management – Tension is always a possibility, especially in the sports field, let alone when your team members are a mixed group of…relatives and family members! Close relationships may lead to transpassing boundaries and frustration may be hiding around the corner. So…better be prepared for it and have an emergency plan to release the tension and bring back peace and balance!

Now that you have taken into consideration those very important aspects of your preparation phase and you know exactly what you expect, you are almost ready for a successful FFS activity! Manage with the practicalities of your event and let’s make it happen!