Story by Camryn Casey, Shakopee; Edited by Lale Akkin, Mounds View
Every Youth In Government participant is assigned to share a hotel room with three other delegates. Though many delegates share rooms with their friends, many problems still may occur due to the lack of communication or cleanliness. Many veteran YIG members have advice for making one’s rooming experience more manageable. After all, there is already so much going on during the winter conference, and rooming complications can add to that stress.
Plan roommates in advance.
Before each conference, delegation advisors ask delegates to request who they would like to room with. It may be difficult to find three people to live with for a weekend, but it is important that each person agrees on the arrangements so no one gets left out. Planning who to room with beforehand can minimize miscommunications and stress. After taking this step, delegates can enter the conference feeling comfortable with their roommates and will not face any surprises regarding who they are staying the night with. However, if one does not have anybody to room with, a new friendship can bloom by rooming with a person they were previously not close with.
Create a group chat.
Communication is the most important asset to minimize issues during the conference. Therefore, communicating with roommates via group chat is essential both during and prior to the conference. Before the conference, delegates can use the group chat to plan meals, find points of interest, communicate rooming customs, and share information. During the conference, they can coordinate schedules, plan group events, and post updates. If a group chat is not established, delegates could get confused regarding lack of information and compromising.
Sleeping and shower arrangements.
Since there are only two beds per room, most delegates must share a bed with a roommate. When choosing roommates for the conference, everyone should know who they are sleeping with so all roommates are comfortable. Sharing a bed with another person can feel uncomfortable for those who are not familiar with the person. Thus, determine sleeping arrangements in advance.
Every delegate is destined to take showers at the conference. Therefore, set up a shower schedule so everyone is able to shower when they need to. This can be done by establishing who showers in the morning and who showers at night. Again, plan this before the conference begins so everything runs smoothly.
Communicate on what to bring to breakfast.
Each delegate must pack breakfast, since it is not provided by the Hilton Hotel and the skyways are not open to delegates. Some may find it hard to bring a whole breakfast for each day. This is why many delegates coordinate which food each roommate brings so everyone can share breakfast. For example, one person can bring cereal bars, someone else can bring fruit, another can bring muffins, and the last can bring granola. To add, non-perishable foods are most useful because of the cooler’s limited space and only a small mini fridge to store perishable foods. It is important for everybody to eat breakfast, and this way everybody can consume a balanced breakfast each day without having to bring loads of food.
Assign chores for each roommate.
Cleanliness is important to keep up with when sharing a space with others. One easy way to keep a room clean is by assigning chores to each person so everybody can contribute to cleaning. Though one is responsible for their own messes, it is also important to help clean spaces where a group collectively makes a mess. Chores that everybody can help with are taking out the trash, wiping down surfaces, turning lights off, and making the beds. On the other hand, each delegate is expected to pick up their own messes such as putting away clothing, unplugging irons, and organizing snacks. Coordinating chores makes it much easier to keep a hotel room clean and organized.
Some people may find it stressful sharing a hotel room with three others. Using strategies to form routines and boundaries can reduce the stress from the winter conference. Planning shower schedules, breakfast, and chores prior to the conference will make sharing a room much easier and improve the delegates’ well-being. The more communication and cleanliness there is, the less stress there will be at the conference.