Sooner or later, everyone has to make the big choice: do I live with my best friend from high school or go “potluck” and get paired with a stranger? If you choose to let fate take control, here are some tips for making it work.
Just because you live together doesn’t mean you’ll be best friends. In fact, some of the best roommate pairs aren’t best friends.
Having your own interests makes you a more interesting person to be around, not to mention a more tolerable roommate. No one likes a codependent roommate who acts like a shadow all the time.
Don’t just draw a line down the middle of the room (the first fight will be who gets stuck by the door.) Decorate walls or build a loft together (a great space maximizer). Working on your space together will help you feel like it belongs to both of you.
But not in an annoying, stalker kind of way. Letting each other know the basics is helpful; for instance, it’s good to have some idea about how your roommate spends thier time. Roommates who don’t even tell each other when they are going home for the weekend rarely last.
Tell your roommate if something is bothering you. Be open to talking through conflicts. Don’t be a control freak. If you demand total domination over your domain, you’ll be on your way to a single room in no time.
