It's easy to contemplate a job or profession different from our own and constantly wonder, "how do they do that?"
Often, this is for complicated jobs that take a skill and discipline we know we could never have ourselves.
This might include wondering how Doctors can put up with all those blood and organs, or how lawyers can remember so many facts and figures off the top of their heads.
Sometimes, however, we might also find ourselves wondering how people with less conventionally prestigious, but no less taxing or demanding positions manage to get through the day and still come home with a smile on their face.
In all cases, everyone has a trick, or hack, to make their life at work easier and/or more effiicient.
Some hacks are fairly common knowledge, others people make great efforts to keep a closely guarded secret.
Redditor Ferro_Roux was eager to learn about hacks in any and every profession that those outside might not know about, leading them to ask:
"What's a hack in your industry that customers aren't supposed to find out?"
Don't tell the conductor...
"Orchestral violinist."
"Sometimes we don't play all the notes."- reddititaly
They Know Even More Than They Let On...
"Former local journalist here."
"If you want to know something about your town, or pretty much anything locally, or find something hinky that you want investigated, just call or email them and ask 'whats happening with that (insert weird item in city budget/shut down road/cop who got fired)?'"
"When I was off deadline, I actually loved fielding these questions (they were mainly from old people) and pretty much worked as customer service for the city a lot."
"I directed people to local programs that would help them, I confirmed the start and proposed end dates of construction and I told people what companies had pulled permits to build that new restaurant on Main street."
"Local journalists have a WEALTH of knowledge in all departments of what is going on in your city, because they drift between one or the other frequently and we ask the other reporters in the cubicle next to us, too."
"They're your tour guides, social workers, watchdogs and public defenders if you just ask them."
"They aren't doing it for the money(cries in past due bills), they're doing it for the love of their community."
"They all really embrace the localism aesthetic."
"I guess this is sort of a 'not supposed to find out' thing because if everyone did it, they'd never get their other work done."- shucksx
Amazing What Can Be Solved By An Adjective
"I worked at a restaurant and one time the chef burned the apple sauce that was supposed to be served with the pork chop, he put it on the menu as 'smoked applesauce' and people loved it."- A**Ketchum42069
Season 11 Cooking GIF by MasterchefGiphy
The Customer Must Be Satisfied
"This was 6-7 years ago so may not be relevant but when I worked at Enterprise Rent-A-Car, the higher ups were so tunnel visioned on positive customer reviews that if there was any problem at all we would write off anything from gas to whole days of rentals."
"We had a few repeat customers that would catch on and habitually complain about dumb sh*t to get parts of the bill discounted."
"Only a rating of 'completely satisfied' counted and it was tied to bonus and promotion so a huge incentive to make people happy."- CromeDaBeast
Careful The Things You Say...
"Just because you’re on hold doesn’t mean we can’t hear you."- Spanksy_Banksy
Do Unto Others...
"When I worked in a hotel as a night porter, the room cost was totally reliant if you were a d*ck or not."
"I obviously couldn't just give rooms away, but I could pretty much knock off 50%."
"One day, a very tired woman came in with her baby, and I couldn't get the payment to go through at all, so I did give it to her for nothing."
"just had to make sure she was out before 9 am, and I cleaned it myself."- Iamtherrealowner
Television Love GIF by HULUGiphy
Who Doesn't Need A Little Positive Reinforcement?
"Dog trainer, this is a hack we want people to understand."
"One reason we can get your dog to do something so fast is because we use a high rate of reinforcement."
"Example : I'm training your dog to walk on leash without pulling, and we practice in your driveway."
"I feed the dog 20 tiny pieces of food by my knee as we walk to the end of the driveway."
"The first time a client tries the exercise, they may use five."
"The mechanics of the exercise look easy, but it takes time to get used to."
"And when people are practicing on their own they do other things, instead of focus on the exercise."
"They forget how often they need to reinforce the dog for doing the right thing."
"If they do the exercise for two minutes during each walk, with a high rate of reinforcement (RoR) , that may be all it takes."
"And once the dog starts to learn, you can gradually slow down the RoR."- a_real_dog_trainer
In Case Of A Last-Minute Change Of Plans...
"Any Marriott booking made partially with points, with a 3-day cancellation policy, can be cancelled the same day of the booking without any fees."- Will_Heredia
An Almost Life Or Death Move
"Paramedic here- keep a list of your medical history, medicines, allergies, health card info and next of kin contact info on a paper on or in your fridge."
"It’s a common place for us to look."
"If you’re incapacitated, we have all the info we need."- Code5fortheCount
Season 2 Help GIF by 9-1-1 on FOXGiphy
How Bad Do You REALLY Want Me...
"If you or a teenager you know are admitted to a name brand / expensive / rich college and their financial aid package isn’t enough, write them and ask them for more money."
"Mention the other schools you were admitted to and that you received strong financial packages from them. DO NOT mention specific numbers unless it’s a named scholarship — eg 'presidential' or 'provost'.”
"At least five of my students this year got between 10-20k ‘extra’ in scholarship money just by soliciting for it."- MobbSleep
All For Display
"You can rent a nice casket for the funeral and be buried in a cheaper one."- lurch940
People Believe What They See
"Good audio engineers will have faders/knobs that don't do anything."
"When the talent asks for a change that's goofy or makes no sense, we'll adjust that phantom knob and watch them nod their head in approval of their amazing idea."- iMixMusicOnTwitch
Recording Sesame Street GIF by Muppet WikiGiphy
It's Always Worth It To Stop And Smell The Roses
"I used to work in the floral industry."
"Don't call a large national florist."
"Look up a local florist in your recipient's area and call them directly."
"Most have websites to help you choose, and you'll save money on delivery and service fees, which can go towards a nicer arrangement."
"Also, unless you order flowers regularly, the membership/loyalty program is a scam and hard to cancel."- abbys_alibi
A Used Car Salesman Was BOUND To Come Up...
"When a car salesman offers you a 'premium car care' package, don't buy it."
"It's a scam."
"Say you're buying a new car, and I offer you the premium car care package."
"It'll only cost you X-amount of money per month, but every time you come to the dealership, you get:"
"*Premium car wash (we hose it down, not a proper car wash)*Interior detailing and rejuvenation (we use compressed air to make the dust go away, sometimes a man uses a wet paper towel)."
"*Functions check and clock synchronization (Check if all the lights work, heater and A/C work and set up the clock if it's wrong)."
"*Summer and winter inspection and free wiper fluid refill, only done once per season."
"Check tire tread, visually check tire pressure, look at temperature gauge to make sure car isn't over heating and add water in the summer, tiny amount of wiper fluid in winter, visually inspect brake disks to see they are not scratched by worn out brake pads."
"*Assistance when you are on the move."
"You call us and then we can call a tow truck for you, at your expense, only possible during business hours."
"Basically, we charge for simple things you can do yourself."
"Also, if a car dealership sells you a used car, they tell you it has been fully serviced."
"Take it to your local mechanic and have it serviced properly."- Carguy_1992
A Good Accountant Is Worth A Splurge... Or Are They?
"Accounting is called a 'sticky' business because we don't lose clients often, unless we are terrible."
"We continually raise rates and overcharge because we know clients will just stay with the same person they know, rather than search around."
"It may be hard to evaluate who is a bad vs good vs great accountant, but that won't matter unless you have a difficult situation or specialized work to be done."
"What matters is you might find an accountant willing to do the same work for a LOT cheaper, if you can just put in a little extra time to ask them to ballpark their rates."
"Think of it this way: people regularly go to different grocery stores, convenience stores and gas station marts to save a few dollars on things like eggs, candy or milk."
"I found eggs for $1.50 when they're normally $2.50" is some big accomplishment."
"What if you found an accountant willing to do your work for $3,000 instead of $5,000?"
'Isn't that worth a few more calls and meetings that you would gladly use time on to find cheaper eggs?"- DonsDiaperIsFull
Episode 15 Money GIF by The SimpsonsGiphy
Who hasn't cut a corner in our job at least once in our life and gotten away with it with zero consequences?
Even if now we all might think twice when visiting a restaurant and seeing a "smoked" item on the menu...
@themanfromvulcan/Reddit
@buffysmanycoats/Reddit
@jadelikethestone/Reddit
