2. Carving out your Character
Character
Role Modeling
Leadership and Followership
Being a Team Player
3. Your values help define you as a leader
Character and as a person. Character is who you
are and how you will act even when no
one is watching.
A Person of
Character Works
Consider the following:
Towards Being
◦ Good intentions alone don’t cut it
Considerate ◦ You need to act
Humane ◦ Let your values be your guide
Aware
Reliable ◦ It’s the Big AND the Little things.
Active As an RA your character is probably under
Culturally sensitive more scrutiny than the average student.
What is your character saying about you?
Team-focused
Effective
Respectful
4. Residents will look to you to
Role Modeling establish what is acceptable and
where the boundaries are.
Things to consider when as you
put your best foot forward:
Attitude
Body Language How do you represent
your staff?
Appropriate Messages
Confident Decision-making speak
Questionable Behaviors act
communicate
Respect goof off
act responsibly
tell jokes
interact with others
5. Leadership and Followership
A true leader knows that it is important for others to share in leadership roles
in order to build up new leaders for tomorrow.
As RAs you don’t try to misuse or overextend your
authority, your talents, or positions.
How to Diffuse Conflict
You should not be
Set firm ground rules the main attraction
insist on civil language
Show people how
Allow no personal attacks on to resolve their own
name calling conflicts rather
than doing it for
Make your intentions &
expectation clear right from the them
start.
You’re there to
Stop offending parties right
away – don’t let them drag the show them the way
group down
Your role involves
Praise positive behavior to send
facilitating
a clear message.
connections between
“Good leaders were first great followers.” – Don
Ward
people and
6. Being a Team Player
Develop a Team Supreme!
Positive approach will gain respect
Discuss strengths and weaknesses
Create Team Traditions
Avoid Cliques
Open lines of Communication
Support one Another
Maintain a professional Attitude Working with Supervisors!!!
Get comfortable with this
Be Polite
person, even when it comes to
sharing feedback. You will
have a lot of personal time with
your Community Coordinator.
It’s okay to ask questions.
7. Being Yourself
Positive Institutional Rep
Wellness
Priority, Organization, and Time
Management
Communication
8. Positive Institutional Rep
Being an RA can be a 24/7 job. You serve as campus role models
and an institutional representative. But can you still be you?
Dealing with your Celebrity Status
As an RA you are a Role Model.
You are on display regardless of
whether you are in your
community, walking to class, or out on
the town. As exciting as the attention is
,there are always drawbacks. You can
become a discussion on
campus, become the campus news, or
apart of the paparazzo's (residents)
new attraction.. They are everywhere!
9. Wellness
Staying Well on and off the job
◦ Focus on the health of your mind, body, and spirit.
Eating
Sleeping
Making time for important things
Sleep Savvy
◦ What is the ideal amount of sleep you need?
Overcompensate
Routine
Power Nap
Nutritional Negligence
◦ What do you eat
◦ Skipping meals
◦ Water
That Move around Magic
◦ Exercise
◦ Staying Active
Let Your Spirit Soar
◦ Taking Quiet time for you
10. Priorities, Organization and Time
Management
Staying Organized
Separate your
Managing Priorities Personal/Professio
nal Space
Make Lists
Declutter
Update Lists
Identify Real
Priorities
Date List Items
Know your Limits
11. Communication
The Written Word
Avoid the Passive
Voice
Non-Verbal
Be Concise
Communication
Be Specific Crossed arms = Closed off to what is
Write like you speak being said
Leaning Forward= interned in what
the other person is saying
Heavy sighs = Discontented or bored
Smiling = Sends positive support
Squirming = Cored or uncomfortable
with the topic
Nodding = Listening and engaged
13. Connecting with your
Residents
Before you can plunge into the
“deep stuff” you need to connect
with residents on the most basic
level.
Link people with similar interests
Make academic connections
Look out for loners
As the RA, you don’t always have to be in the
limelight, leading students every step of the way.
Sometimes your most important role is that of
facilitator – where you facilitate the beginning of
relationships and connections between students.
Sometimes they just need that little nudge that you
provide!
14. Culture and Civility
Civility
1: formal or perfunctory
politeness
2: the act of showing regard for
other
Source: http:/dict.die.net/civility/
Create welcoming
communities Gossip Can Poison!
Use inclusive
decorations While gossip forms one of
Assess restricting the oldest and (still) the
facilities most common means of
spreading and sharing
Do not assume
information, it also has a
Be human reputation for the
Address slurs introduction of errors and
Create open other variations into the
communities information thus
15. Programming and Event
Management
Know your
Audience
◦ Group Brainstorming
◦ Surveys
◦ Focus groups
How to get started Programming:
1. Know what your budget is
2. Format a timeline
3. Make your Publicity
4. The Small Stuff
5. Follow up
17. Be clear about expectations
Welcoming Be consistent
Recognize achievements, big and small
Keep people informed
Maintain a positive attitude
As the RA it is your
Hold people accountable
job to build
community. This can Confront in private when possible
be an exciting and
Be a good Listener
sometimes daunting
task. So dig in and Be Welcoming to people from a variety of
get started!
backgrounds
Welcome questions
Don’t pass judgment on mistakes
Admit your own mistakes
Incorporate their suggestions, criticisms and ideas
Give Feedback
Share why you do things they way you do them
Never lose sight that students are people first
18. Diversity and Social Justice
THE BIG SIX!
Ethnicity: Students may look like one ethnicity but identify as another or more
,
than one ethnicity.
Age: Some residents may be returning to college after a leave or just starting
out.
Spirituality: Be aware of your words and what assumptions they make.
Ability: Abilities range from emotional or psychological to physical. Students
may have family and friends who are differently-abled. Watch words like
“retarded” or “cripple”
Socic-Economic Status: Think about finances when determining group
experiences.
20. It’s okay to be wrong “Character cannot be
developed in ease
and quiet. Only
through experience
Admitting when you’re wrong not only
of trial and suffering
demonstrates human fallibility, it
can the soul be
admits a willingness to hold yourself, strengthened, ambiti
as well as your fellow group on inspired, and
members, to certain standards. success achieved”
- Helen Keller
As an RA when you admit to being
wrong it creates a more comfortable
climate for residents and it reminds
RES
them it’s okay to take a risk. LIFE
“ You must never feel badly about making misstates, as long as you
take the trouble to learn from them. For your often learn more by
being wrong for the right reasons than you do by being right for the
wrong reasons.”
- Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth