How to Deal . . . . . . With Your Roommate

Perhaps the biggest gamble when starting college is your roommate. You have some semblance of control over your classes, your extra curricular activities, and who you chose to "hang out" with. Your roommate on the other hand, is usually someone chosen at random.

Best case scenario, you and your roommate mesh perfectly and you become instant best friends for life. Does it happen; sure, but so does the worst case scenario. That is you and your roommate are complete opposites that can't stand to be in each other's presence.

More likely, your situation will be somewhere in the middle. You are going to be spending a lot of time with your roommate (after all, you do live together), so it is important you can at least get along civilly.

Often the most overlooked step is the most important; talk to your roommate. If something bothers you, let them know. You can't blame them for repeating an annoying habit if you never bothered to tell them it is annoying. Prevention is usually the best policy when dealing with roommate issues, so try whenever possible to prevent problems before they rear their ugly head. This is easier to accomplish than many imagine.

The biggest mistake people make is playing things by ear. Don't assume everything will fall perfectly into place. Act proactively to prevent problems by drawing up a roommate contract. If that sounds to legal and fancy, call it a roommate agreement form. What should be included in this form; a sample contract / agreement is on the adjacent page which you can feel free to cut out and use or use it as a guide line to make your own.

A few important guidelines when dealing with roommates in general; be courteous, respectful, and willing to compromise. Being courteous tends to have a contagious effect. Be polite and your roommate will likely follow suite. If you yell and scream at them, how do you think they will respond; not favorably. Offer to help them when you can, and wish them luck when you can't. It doesn't take much, but helps a lot; and the offer is usually reciprocated.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T. This one goes both ways too. Mutual respect goes a long way. Couple it with compromise, and you can generally institute civil "quick fixes" for most of your problems. If you can both see things from each other's perspective, develop a mutual understanding, and learn to compromise, you should be in for some fairly smooth sailing. You don't have to be best friends with your roommate, but you do have to be able to get along.

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