Chances are, you’re not going to be best friends with your roommate. Throw together two randomly assigned young adults who’ve likely never shared a room in their lives and you’ve got a recipe for disaster – or at least a disgusting sink full of dishes.
Even if you guys love each other, there’s guaranteed to be some conflicts at some point, and the key to your first year is learning how to effectively handle them. In the mean time, here are some quick tips to speed up the process.
1. Bring Earplugs.
Even if you’re usually the kind of person who stays up until the sun, you might find that passing your morning class means getting a full 8 hours the night before. Your roommate’s schedule is probably going to differ from yours, and while they should respectfully quiet down, it’s unrealistic to expect dead silence from them.
A pair of earplugs lets you get the sleep you need, and they can be used during the day when you need a quiet space to study.
2. Avoid passive-aggressive behavior.
When your roommate drives you insane, it can be pretty tempting to engage in a mini-revenge scheme – nothing malicious or crazy, just slamming the door when you know they’re trying to sleep. Resist the urge. 99 percent of the time, that kind of behavior is only going to make things worse.
People aren’t always good at seeing what mistakes they’re making, but they’re great at seeing yours, and all you’d be doing is putting yourself in the “bad guy” position. So as difficult as it might be, talk to your roommate – and then move on with your day.
3. Learn to accept your roommate’s short comings.
We can’t all have perfect roommates – in fact, no one does. There’s always going to be a few things that bother you about the person you’re living with. While you should try your best to split chores evenly and peacefully resolve conflict, at some point you have to accept that your roommate simply will not do her dishes until asked 50 times.
It’s a lot easier to just accept it and let it go than to stay mad about it for the entire year. For the sake of your mental health, accept her and move on.
Living with another human being is never easy, and it sounds cliché, but communication is always key. Sometimes we end up with people who just can’t communicate – so put in your earplugs, and think of how awesome summer break is going to be.
Have you had a crazy roommate? How have you dealt with them?
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