Being in college means that you most likely live with one or more roommates. Whether or not that be in the dorms or off-campus housing, you learn a lot by living with other people. It can be super fun living with your friends, but it can also be a lot of work. Here are some things what I learned about living with other people.
1. Your messes are their messes.
Even if all the mess is in your room, you have to think about if you accidentally leave your door open and your roommate has people over. Someone may need to use your bathroom and then they could see your dirty cereal bowl from yesterday, your clothes everywhere, or your bed that isn't made.
The same thing goes for the common areas. I love to do my homework in the living room with my roomies, it's our way of spending time together while staying proactive with school. However, I tend to bring messes with me sometimes. I have learned to clean up as I go or not bring so much stuff with me to keep it from getting so dirty.
2. Dirty dishes
Dishes seem to be a very common issue that roommates have with each other. They tend to pile up because everyone generally cooks at once, and on some occasions, you forget to go back and clean them. In college, you don't have your parents forcing you to help clean up before you can even leave the kitchen, so being the young adults that we are we sometimes leave them in the sink.
It's not cool to not do your dishes; so do them! When you don't, they attract bugs and then everyone has to deal with bugs. Say no to bugs and wash your dishes!
3. Take turns doing the dirty work.
We all have that one chore that we dread doing every time. Mine just so happens to be multiple things; taking out the trash, sweeping, moping, and laundry. Which is pretty much everything. My roommates and I have adopted a chore wheel, well, an invisible one. This way they wouldn't be the only ones taking out the trash and sweeping the floors.
4. Sharing is caring.
Taking turns can also work really well for groceries. There are tons of things that everyone uses so it just makes sense to take turns buying them. Why buy three separate kinds of milk? My first year living off campus I didn't anticipate sharing any of my stuff, so when I went to use something and it wasn't there I wasn't happy.
I bought butter and a couple weeks later I went to make a grilled cheese, one of the few things I know how to make, and it was gone! Just an empty container in the refrigerator. Turns out my roommate uses butter for quite a lot of things. After that, I was introduced to the idea of sharing essentials and my wallet has thanked me for that.
5. Turn down the volume
One of my roommates is a nursing major. We all know what that means...a crazy schedule and a lot to study for. When she is home she is either sleeping, studying, in between work and clinical's, or crying from all the stress. (Just kidding). How annoying would it be for her if I had my music playing all the time and letting our dogs be rowdy while she's trying to sleep or study? The answer to that question is very.
6. Go the extra mile to help a sister out!
Every now and then we get busy and forget to do things we planned to. This is where roommates can be super helpful! I have found that when I'm busy a lot of times they step in to help me out. For example, when I leave my leftovers from lunch on the counter and they see it and put it up so it doesn't go bad.
They do so much beyond just that, so sometimes I try to do more than what I planned on. Like cleaning the kitchen, straightening up the living room, taking out the trash, etc.
At the end of the day, no one can be the perfect roommate in college, but it doesn't hurt to take out the trash in between beers.
