Guests Who Overstay Their Welcome
Have you ever had guests at your house that just don’t seem to want to leave? Many times when you have a party, or something even if you only have a few friends over, some of your guests don’t seem to leave at the time you want them to. When this happens, we’ve come up with a list of things to do to possibly get these people out of your home without being rude or disrespectful.
Set Rules – Before anyone actually steps foot on your doorstep, make sure you are clear as to how long you are expecting to have them over. You could say, “Sure, we would love to have you over. We are free tomorrow until 8 p.m.” Or if it is a friend that is staying overnight, say “Yes, please come stay with us, we’d love to have you for two days.” By setting your availability in advance, everyone is clear with the time you have and want to share.
Hold Your Ground- When someone is sitting on your couch, it’s easy for them to stay planted there longer than you expected. You could simply just look at your watch and say, “Wow it’s already 8 o’clock, I have to get some work done before I get to bed, what are your plans for tomorrow?” Saying it in this way, you let your guest know that you need him/her to leave but at the same time you convey to them that you enjoy their company. Asking what their plans are for tomorrow eliminates the thought that you are just trying to get rid of them.
Use a Sense of Humor- Joking around keeps a friendly atmosphere with a guest. The host of the party could say in a joking manner, “We both know you love us to death but we have better things to do.” This line is better used with friends you have known for a quite a while, who understand your sense of humor and who don’t feel that you’re disrepecting them. Although you are joking, at the same time you are also getting your point across that you need them to leave. Having a sense of humor builds a very friendly relationship with the guest and shows that you can joke around with each other because your have a good relationship.
Larger Party- When it starts getting late and you need people to leave your party, here’s the perfect solution. A trick that an Apartments.com staffer has used before is brilliant. He explained to friend that he needed to get people to leave his party. The friend stood across the room from our staffer so that their conversation could easily be heard by all the party guests. It went a little something like this:
Friend- Hey, it’s getting late, you sure you are going to be able to get up early tomorrow?
Staffer- You’re right, we should end this party now and do this again sometime real soon.
Then our staffer and his friend started cleaning up while saying their good bye’s to party go-ers. In this situation, our staffer had his friend explain to people why the party was enging, it didn’t seem as if the host was actually “kicking” people out. If you do try this, and you encounter a guest that didn’t hear that the party was ending, explain that it’s getting late and most people are leaving so you decided to end the party but that you do plan on having another one very soon and will inform them of it.
*Golden Tip* The best way to make an awkward “kick out” into a friendly goodbye is always asking your guests what their plans are for the following day or week. Saying, “Hey it was great having you over but I have to get some work done, bye” works, but it sounds pretty rude. Saying, “Hey it was great having you over but I have to get some work done, what are your plans for next week because we have to do this again real soon,” shows that you enjoy their company but have other things to do that you can’t put aside. Making future plans eliminates the thought that you are trying to completely get rid of them.
Always be polite and remember, Your House, Your Rules.
|
Email this Article
Print this Article
(Rate this article)