Say the spare room is available before they need it
People leaving bad situations often have nowhere to go for two nights, and cannot bring themselves to ask.
The BeingKind editorsPublished How this is written
Why it lands
The gap between deciding to leave — a relationship, a houseshare, a situation — and having somewhere to go is where people get stuck and go back. Asking to stay means disclosing that things are bad, which is the hardest part. An offer made in advance, unprompted and unconditional, sits there as a known option and can be taken up without any explanation at all.
How
Say it once, clearly, when nothing is wrong: “If you ever need a couple of nights, the room is there and I won't ask why.” Then mean it. Do not repeat it often enough to imply you are expecting a crisis.
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