When I was in my undergrad I always had roommates. And when I was an upperclassman I even shared a house with a few of my teammates. But upon graduation, one of my roommates moved back home to Houston and the other one got married. Myself however had made plans to pursue further education in an MBA program at my school. So I needed a place to live. I decided that living alone would be more beneficial (I didn't want to find roommates, that's a hassle). Here's some tips that I've learned over the last year that could help you if you are living alone for the first time.
1. Cleaning becomes more important.
When you live alone there's no one to blame about who didn't do the dishes or who hasn't been cleaning. It's all you. And you really start to notice when your apartment/house is a mess. You just feel gross. And trust me when you clean you feel better. (Yes, Mom, I do clean on a regular basis.)
2. You need to interact with people.
It's easy to just stay at home and watch Netflix and not go outside. Even when you're an extrovert it becomes easy to become an introvert. We need people and relationships to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Go out with your friends, meet new people, go outside. Trust me.
3. Be OK with being alone.
On the flip side it's OK to be alone. It's OK to binge watch your favorite show on Netflix. It will be more quiet than you're used to. You can watch what you want, eat what you want and best of all no pants. Who wouldn't like that? But if you get too lonely go outside and hang with your friends.
4. Learn to cook for yourself.
This is a great time to really experiment and learn how to cook Now it is harder to cook for one person, but just think of it this way: leftovers are always yours. So chef it up. Your future significant other will appreciate it more if you knew how to cook.
5. Budgeting.
No one likes to pay bills, but it's what adults have to do. Assuming you are paying for all your own bills (If you don't just know you're wrong and I hate you). You need to learn how to budget your money so you can have enough to pay your bills and live. I struggle with this one the most but I can honestly say I have improved little by little (still a work in progress). But make sure you budget for emergencies and for fun stuff too. That's one of the biggest lessons I've learned.
6. Develop sense of comfort: make your place home.
It's your damn place decorate how you want to. Whatever makes you comfortable. You want to put street signs on the wall? Do it. You want to cover your walls in tin foil and pancakes? It's your place. (Note highly recommend you don't do the pancakes they will go bad). You want to show off all your Dallas Cowboys memorabilia? Do it. But make it feel like home, your home. It is your place after all make it your own. Just be comfortable.
There is my six tips for living alone for the first time. Just remember to relax, it's OK. You may be an adult now but you're going to be OK. Living alone is a lot of fun and worth it.
