Having visitors is both exciting and exhausting. Opening your home to other people, whether that’s friends, family or maybe even strangers, it’s important to make them feel at home. A good host improves the chances of a great guest, so learn the ways of transforming yourself and your home for the eventuality of visitors. The chance to show off your wonderful taste should be thrilling enough, but enjoying the company of loved ones in your most relaxing environment creates a strong social bond. Here are a few tips on how to make your guests feel more at home when visiting.
Think Ahead
This might seem obvious to a practiced host, but many people forget to provide the essentials for their guests and have to stay up late making beds and finding clean towels while their visitors wait. If you know you have people arriving, prepare the parts of your home that will be open to them. This means cleaning rooms and washing laundry, especially fresh bedding and towels. If you can spring for a few treats, find some small toiletries to give them in case they neglected to bring their own. These tiny touches can make all the difference.
Have a Dedicated Space
It depends on your living situation, but it is not uncommon to have a dedicated guest bedroom or bedrooms for when your visitors stay the night. Of course, if your home is relatively small or particularly crowded, sofa beds and inflatable mattresses are a fine alternative, but being able to offer a proper bedroom will go a long way to making your guests feel at home.
Fill it with modern furniture and unique decorations to distance it from the feeling of staying at a hotel.
Don’t Hide Boundaries
Maybe you have a special diet that means you’d rather not share the food in your fridge. Maybe you have an office or studio that shouldn’t be tampered with. If you are entertaining guests and fail to tell them their boundaries upfront and in a friendly way, they can’t be blamed for accidentally overstepping the mark. Let them know whether or not they are permitted to browse the kitchen at their leisure or let the dog into the garden at certain times. Being open about what the rules of the house are doesn’t make you a strict or unpleasant host; it avoids the potential for embarrassment should your guests make an unwitting mistake.
Avoid Expectations
Sometimes you might go to a lot of trouble for your visitors and feel as if hardly any of it has been properly appreciated. While this certainly can be frustrating, it is essential not to expect lavish gratitude or return offers in exchange for your generosity. After all, the whole premise of kindness is to treat other people well without hoping for something back. By releasing yourself from this expectation, you will be more generous with your guests and therefore more likely to have them respond positively. If they turn out to be the guests from hell, you can simply not invite them back.
24 July 2019
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