4 Tips For Getting Along With Your Roommates
How do you get along with roommates? Maybe you have been friends for years. Maybe you met when you moved into the apartment. It can be a challenge to live with new people. It can be hard to adjust each person’s habits and complement each other. Here are a couple of tips to help you all figure out how to live together and get along.
1. Open Communication
Ease into your relationships with your roommates. If you weren’t already friends before you moved in together, it will take some time to get acquainted. Plan a time for all of you to get together and have an apartment meeting. Discuss what each of your expectations are for your living spaces and how you can help each other throughout the semester. Discuss some possible “house rules” and set boundaries with each other. Make an agreement with each other to abide by these “rules” and to communicate often about how things are going.
2. Address Issues Early and Respectfully
If something is bothering you, tell your roommate before it festers and becomes a reason that you dislike your roommate. Chances are they didn’t realize that it was a problem. The sooner you address the issue, the sooner it can be fixed.
Make sure you are respectful and understanding when you talk to your roommate. They are more likely to be receptive when you use kind words. Try not to come across as being rude.
One way you could ask a messy roommate to put their dishes in the dishwasher after using them is, “It is important to me to keep the counters in the kitchen clear and dishes done. This helps me feel more calm and happy at home. Do you think you could help by putting your dishes in the dishwasher when you are done with them?” This is a great way to ask without them feeling like you are attacking them.
Try not to get emotional about it. You should avoid getting angry and try to see from their perspective. When living with other people, there are bound to be things that drive you crazy. Your roommates probably notice things about your habits that they don’t like as well. Talk calmly.
3. Extend a Hand
One of the best ways to have a good relationship with your roommates is to extend your hand in service. Doing service can help you grow to love your roommate. It can also help them learn to appreciate you and enjoy being around you. You can take the time to make them dinner on a night that you have time but they may not. Another way to extend yourself is to invite them out. You can invite them to go to a club meeting with you. When you are going to an event on campus, you can invite them to join. Or you can keep it simple and go watch a movie together in your student housing complex's clubhouse or play games in the game room. You don’t need to be best friends with your roommate, but you should still be able to be around each other and spend time together without it being awkward.
4. Hold up Your End of the Agreement
When you decided to move into the apartment and have roommates, you made an agreement to do your part. This means taking care of your own messes and keeping the apartment clean. Your roommates should not have to clean up after you to feel comfortable in their own home.
There will also be regular clean checks. It will be much easier to clean up for clean checks if everyone does their part to keep the apartment clean daily. It also means that you are responsible for your guests. Extra people in the apartment means more things to clean up. It also means more noise. Make sure that you and your guests are responsible and respectful of other people in your apartment and apartments around it.
As you navigate your new relationships with your roommates, remember to be kind and respectful. Relationships take time and patience.
