Communication with Roommates Makes Us Smarter

Although I have been away from my parents before, living in a big city with a bunch of people I don't know has been quite the experience. College life is different from anything else in the world. For the first time you are thrown out, expected to get good grades, stay healthy, meet new people, and graduate with a career start. Sounds simply but it is proving to be quite the contrary.

Getting along with our new roommates is an essential part of college living. Through this process we learn a very important skill. If your boss has opposing views or wants to do things differently than you think they should be done, than you might have a conflict. It is important as new members of the workforce to know how to deal with these situations in an appropriate manner, so you don't lose your job. During my first night at Drexel I discovered that my roommate likes to sleep with his old noisy fan on. I prefer to sleep in a quiet room. I politely asked him to turn the setting down. He still sleeps with the fan on but it is much quieter than it used to be. This sounds simple but I know people who would have said, "Turn that piece of crap off!" which would obviously cause problems. That thirty second conversation was probably the most important communication we had. If I didn't say anything then I wouldn't be sleeping as well at night. The communication skills that we learned living in the dorms with new people will directly translate to our careers in the workforce. As a business major I know that I will be working in a team of peers where my ability to effectively communicate will determine my success.