In the TV show “The Traitors”, most players don’t lose because they’re dishonest. They lose because they’re confident they’re doing the right thing. The players never stop to check their blind spots. Resident Advisor teams can work the same way. You can be committed, well-intentioned, and may still contribute to missteps you don’t see.
The Five “Faithful” Archetypes
Which of these could you sign “Faithfully, Yours”?
1. The Peacemaker
- What You Do Well: You’re the one who keeps the RA team and your residents calm. You de-escalate situations. People trust you.
- The Blind Spot: You avoid naming issues until they become unavoidable.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the Faithful who votes with the group to avoid standing out.
- Housing Impact: You might let small issues go undocumented. This may lead to patterns getting missed. For example, not keeping record of an ongoing bathroom cleanliness issue can change the trajectory of how it needs to be addressed.
- Growth Question: What conversations am I postponing?
2. The Overachiever
- What You Do Well: You’re reliable to your peers, visible to your residents, and praised by your supervisors.
- The Blind Spot: You trust but don’t verify, assuming others are meeting your same standards without checking.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the player everyone trusts, so no one questions your assumptions.
- Housing Impact: You might end up taking extra holds and trades, picking up extra work in co-programming, etc. without addressing the imbalance.
- Growth Question: Where am I absorbing instead of addressing?
3. The Silent Observer
- What You Do Well: You notice patterns others miss.
- The Blind Spot: You wait for someone else to speak up first.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the Faithful who figures it out too late into the game.
- Housing Impact: By not letting your work and ideas shine, supervisors may lose out on critical insight they never knew you had.
- Growth Question: What information am I holding?
4. The Rule-Follower
- What You Do Well: You take policy seriously and protect your residents/RA team.
- The Blind Spot: You’re labeled “strict,” even when you’re right about guidelines.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the Faithful voted out for being too quiet because of your social game.
- Housing Impact: The residents and your peers may feel disrupted by being reminded of housing policies or good role-modeling.
- Growth Question: How can I successfully communicate accountability?
5. The Protector
- What You Do Well: You look out for your residents and fellow RAs.
- The Blind Spot: You may cover for behavior that needs addressing.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the Faithful accidentally shielding a Traitor because of your friendship with them.
- Housing Impact: By allowing concessions when it comes to following the rules, you may be accidentally allowing another person to bear the brunt of the harm. For example, by not writing up a resident for violating a smoking violation in a room, you may be impacting their smoke-sensitive roommates.
- Growth Question: Who may I be protecting and at what cost?
The Two “Traitor” Archetypes
Which one feels traitorously familiar?
1. The Performer
- What You Do Well: You communicate confidently, speak up in meetings, and build strong rapport with supervisors and residents.
- The Blind Spot: Your visibility may outpace your behind-the-scenes follow-through.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the Traitor who controls the narrative at both the Roundtable and the Challenges. But, when it comes to the Turret, you struggle to be decisive.
- Housing Impact: Perception of contribution doesn’t always match actual contribution. You may lose track of administrative duties, participate minimally on a team collaboration, or forget to follow-up on a resident’s ask of you. This can create resentment or a loss of trust.
- Growth Question: Does my follow-through match how I present myself to the team?
2. The Avoider
- What You Do Well: You’re easy to work with and rarely escalate situations unnecessarily. People feel comfortable around you, and you help keep the overall vibe calm. You’ll only step in and support the team when directly asked.
- The Blind Spot: You tend to wait for issues to resolve on their own or for someone else to name them first.
- Traitors Parallel: You’re the player who stays under the radar by not drawing attention to themselves. You’re never the first to speak and rarely the one to challenge what’s happening both at the Roundtable and up in the Turret.
- Housing Impact: Similar to the Peacemaker, small concerns may go undocumented. This means patterns could continue unnoticed and your supervisor or RA peers might have to step in when it’s too late.
- Growth Question: What am I currently seeing or sensing that I haven’t named? What would happen if I addressed it sooner?
The RA Team Roundtable
In The Traitors, being Faithful isn’t enough. You have to be actively discerning. RA work is the same. Good intentions don’t replace documentation, clear communication, and timely intervention. If your team had to play a game of Traitors, ask yourself:
- Which archetype would others see me as?
- What feedback from my team would surprise me?
- What’s one behavior I could shift this month to strengthen trust on my team?
