There are some things you can tell your castaways that will help you win Survivor: Island of the idols. Other things might have to be kept a secret.
The whole point of Survivor is to outwit, outplay, and outlast the competition en route to a million-dollar prize and the title of Sole Survivor. However, some people in the early days approached that goal with the noblest of intentions, disregarding anybody who played the game in an underhanded way such as lying and manipulating in a heavy-handed way.
In the modern age of Survivor, however, some will have to lie just to avoid being targeted right away. Imagine if Bret LaBelle didn’t tell others he was a funeral director but was, in fact, a Boston Police Department officer? He’d probably be voted out a long time before he did in Millennials vs. Gen X, much like Tony might have been in Cagayan had he not been found out by a fellow police officer.
That’s the kind of mentality many of the Island of the Idols players will enter the game with, as a video uploaded to the show’s YouTube channel shows many will lie or omit parts of their life to further their games. Vince is going to be Homeboy Vince, not Admissions Counselor Vince, which seems slightly less of a secret than “Stanford Vince.”
There are interesting dynamics at play for people based on their work backgrounds. Lauren doesn’t want to outright come forward with being a nanny but would answer as such if someone asked about her. Meanwhile, Dean looks to avoid talking about being in tech sales, Ronnie knows the preconceived notions of being a poker player, Tom has too many scars to pretend to be an accountant, and Elizabeth doesn’t want to announce she is an Olympian.
The smarter decision, in my humble opinion, is to keep your strengths a secret. Tommy’s strength capabilities can be more hidden than that of Aaron’s, same with Missy’s fire-making skills and Chelsea’s puzzle-solving skills. It’s when it becomes too late to get rid of them that it’s possible either of the two latter can emerge as capable threats to win the game of Survivor.