~ Blog Posts Written By RAs for RAs ~
As the year plugs on, and a staff feels more comfortable, the list of challenges changes from introducing yourself and getting to know your coworkers to how to maintain a strong work environment and contrary to popular belief–not getting too comfortable! Maybe you’re really good friends with one or two coworkers, but not necessarily close with some others. While this is completely natural, and even to be expected, it’s important to keep an open mind to building relationships, and keeping your staff dynamic interesting, rather than stagnant.
Developing your Current Relationships:
Having coworkers you consider closer than others is perfectly natural, and you shouldn’t feel guilty because of it–especially on larger staffs. For example, I felt completely overwhelmed trying to remember who everyone was on my first staff, nevermind how to maintain multiple new friendships and a laundry list of fun facts to memorize. It can be beneficial to start small with coworkers you most closely align with and work from there.
On that note, try to remember that while being friends with your fellow RAs can be a great experience, perhaps even outside of work, they are still your coworkers. Try to remember that actions you take together can impact the entire staff, such as not including others or by doing other activities that might not be looked at so fondly. You live where you work, and that boundary can sometimes be a little fuzzy.
Reaching out to Someone New:
Reaching out to someone new is hard! And awkward. And uncomfortable. And sometimes it doesn’t work well. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Even if you don’t end up becoming best friends with all of your fellow RAs, having at least a good working relationship can make all of the difference on long duty shifts, or when responding to an incident together.
Some strategies could including trying to sit next to someone new at every staff meeting, rather than just your closer friends. Also, try suggesting potential team building activities to your hall directors! They are probably already spending an inordinate amount of time trying to plan staff bonding activities, so by making suggestions you not only make their jobs easier, but also help it so that your team building activities are actually something you and your peers can find interesting and beneficial. My personal favorite is randomly pairing people together and making them compete in fun activities such as a painting contest, games of Mafia, etc. Furthermore, you can try programming with new people, potentially combining your budgets to not only work with peers you don’t commonly interact with, but also extend networking opportunities to residents.
What if you encounter conflict?
While an ideal staff wouldn’t have conflicting personalities, that just simply isn’t realistic. Even the best teams experience conflict from time to time, and being able to navigate that tension without impacting your work ability is a critical skill to have in not only the RA position, but life in general.
Addressing conflict early is important not only in this scenario, but at any point in life. It’s important to reach out to those you might have differences with when they first arrive, rather than letting resentment build. Think about potentially reaching out to your supervisor for advice and guidance about working with those you don’t particularly blend with. Sometimes an outside perspective can be helpful in seeing situations from a different light. A cohesive staff isn’t one that never faces disagreement, but one that is able to work through it.
Providing Support during Tough Times
As a semester drags on, the pressure faced by classes and life in general tend to mount. Maybe you notice a coworker acting different, or potentially putting less effort into their position as an RA. Not jumping right to conclusions and maybe looking to help out might be very impactful to them. Small gestures can go a long way, such as maybe recognizing when a coworker is going through a rough time and offering to switch a duty shift with them to lighten their workload. Another example could include helping them with a difficult incident, even if you aren’t necessarily on call. You don’t need to be best friends to help someone out, as long as you aren’t overburdening yourself in the process!
Conclusion
Remember that no matter what, you’re stuck with your staff for the whole year. While that might seem a tad reductionist, your team dynamic starts with you and whatever you make it. Using the RA job as an opportunity to practice networking and professional communication can make a world’s worth of difference when you graduate and move into your field of choice. Having enhanced communication skills and the ability to foster a more inclusive environment can be helpful additions to any resume or CV, and are often sought-after skill sets in any professional field, ranging from communications even to abstract choices such as medicine and engineering.
