Meet the 'Survivor 44' Cast! Helen Li Wants People to Perceive Her as an "Airhead"

The product manger, 29, is banking on a lifetime of "context switching" to help her navigate the social game.

Helen Li sees a lot of Survivor 41 winner Erika Casupanan in her, and is hoping to repeat the history of the woman who "changed history" and take home the win. The 29-year-old has lived a life of "code-switching" that has made her adaptable to many different personalities, be they friend or foe. And even though the product manager admits she easily gets lost in the jungle, she thinks her unassuming bubbly persona will allow her to navigate to the destination of Sole Survivor.

Read on for my interview with Helen, and make sure to check in with Parade.com every day for interviews with this season's contestants and other tidbits. Survivor 44 premieres on March 1 with a special two-hour premiere on CBS.

Related: Meet the Full Cast of Survivor 44

Interview with Helen from Survivor 44

Why are you here on Survivor?
I'm here on Survivor because I've been watching the show for over ten years. It's my favorite show. It's been going on for over 20 years, but every single season is surprising and amazing in its own way. So I've always wanted to play it. I think it's the ultimate game. I think it is the ultimate adventure. And it brings a lot of people together that might not have crossed paths in their normal lives. So I think that it's just the ultimate way to challenge yourself and prove yourself.

What's your history with watching Survivor?
So I actually didn't watch it growing up. Because my parents were Chinese and they didn't really watch American reality TV shows or anything like that. But when I went off to college, I got to know a group of people and was trying to make friends my freshman year. And they were really excited about season 25 Philippines because there was someone on the season who had graduated from our school. So they were like, "Do you want to join us on this fantasy draft? We're gonna make it a thing. We're gonna watch every week and keep up with it." So I started watching that season and ever since then was absolutely hooked.

Give me one Survivor winner and one non-winner who you identify with the most.
I quite identify with Erika from season 41, who's a pretty recent winner. But I think on paper, we kind of have a similar profile. We're small Asian women who might be underestimated in the corporate setting. And I think she's quite bubbly. So I feel like she did a really good job of using the things that people might underestimate her for and using them as her own strengths to get to the end. So she's someone that I identify with as a winner.

I think someone who I really admired that did not win is Lauren O'Connell. I thought she did a really great job. She was super competitive. She had a lot of people that were on her side, who obviously didn't make it to the very end. But I thought she was someone that I identified with as well.

What's your favorite moment in Survivor history?
A very easy one is the Black Widow Brigade taking the immunity necklace from Erik, bless his heart. (Laughs.) I thought it was just such a powerful moment. Especially because it was one of the first times I saw women band together and really use what makes them women as a tool of power. So I thought that was amazing. And every time I rewatch it, it's still a crazy moment.

What's one life experience you feel has prepared you most for the game?
Maybe not just one experience, but I think growing up. My parents are Chinese, but I grew up in the suburbs of Boston, which is a very white area. So I feel like I often had to kind of context switch and culture switch a bit between different groups of people, whether it's my high school versus my friends who did Chinese dance with me who are majority Chinese-American. Or even within college, I had different groups of people that I would fit in with. And just kind of navigating those different societies and the norms within them, you learn how to adapt your personality a little bit. And I feel like that's prepared me well for this game and getting to know anyone and being able to get along with anyone.

What excites you the most about the new era of Survivor?
I think what excites me the most is also what's most terrifying. It's kind of a double-edged sword. I've seen twenty years of the show, and I have come to expect certain things. But in this new era, you can't take anything for granted or go into anything thinking that you know what's going to happen. So I feel like it really truly tests us as adaptable people, rather than the person that knows all the Survivor trivia over the last 20 years. So I think that that's really exciting, just to see what's new that they throw at us and how we adapt to it.

What do you think people will perceive you as?
I think people will perceive me as really friendly and bubbly. And I think, for better or for worse, sometimes that comes off as less strategic or less intelligent. Especially for young women who are friendly and bubbly, they think, "Oh, maybe she's an airhead. Maybe she's a ditz." But I would like for people to perceive me as that, especially my tribemates. I'd love for them to perceive me as that. And then have some strategy behind the scenes that they're not as aware of.

What type of player are you looking for in an alliance?
I think the type of player I'm looking for in an alliance is someone who I can really have a strong strategic partnership. Kind of like the Ricard and Shan relationship back in season 41, where they were able to bounce ideas off of each other and really work together. But they still have that mutual respect that, at some point, one of them is going to have to take the other out. So I would love for someone who is working with me in an equal partnership, but is more loyal to me than I am to them, so I'm able to take them out at the right time before they do the same to me.

How eager will you be to look for advantages in the game?
One thing about me is I have a really, really terrible sense of direction. So I think in the first few days, I need to sit still because I'm going to get lost on that island if I try looking for advantages. And people are gonna think I'm idol hunting when I'm really just trying to get back to camp. (Laughs.) So I'm very eager, but I think I need to get a lay of the land and understand where I am on the island first before I start doing that.

What is the one thing you told yourself you wouldn't do in this game?
I told myself I would never quit. And I don't think I would ever give up my place in a challenge for something like food. Something that's an advantage or twist, that's different. But for food, I can eat when the 26 days are over.

What's the best advice you received before coming out to play?
My boyfriend and my parents were trying to give me advice. But I think the best advice that I received was to try to make really genuine one-on-one bonds with people so that regardless of how you're perceived in the camp, people have a reason to keep you around.

Can you come up with your own weird phrase that could be said at a challenge to unlock an idol?
Sure, let me just make one up totally random. "It's like when the tiger jumped in the pool and lost its stripes."

What celebrity or fictional character would you want to come out for a Loved Ones visit?
I'm a huge Taylor Swift fan. So any chance that I could get to meet Taylor Swift, I will take it. I don't know if she watches Survivor, or even wants to be here in the elements on the island. But if she's there, I would be over the moon. (Laughs.)

Next, check out our interview with Survivor 44 contestant Carson Garrett.