Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Share The Stupidest Things They've Seen Someone Do After Being Told Not To

A man in a blue shirt and shorts falling head first down concrete stairs
man in blue t-shirt and blue denim shorts sitting on concrete stairs during daytime
Photo by Sander Sammy on Unsplash

Reddit user Fyrewall1 asked: 'What's the stupidest thing you've seen someone do despite being expressly told not to do it?'

Make us preferred on Google

Oscar Wilde once famously stated, "I can resist anything, except temptation".

And indeed, there is little more tempting than doing something you were explicitly told not to do.


From Eve eating the apple in the Garden of Eden to Red Riding Hood straying from the path to her grandmother's house, one would think the world would have learned by now that there are consequences to ignoring warnings.

Even so, be they children or educated, well-adjusted adults, people still willfully ignore warnings and instructions.

And you'd better believe there were consequences.

Redditor Fyrewall1 was curious to hear about the most jaw-dropping instances of people ignoring the warnings of their superiors, leading them to ask:

"What's the stupidest thing you've seen someone do despite being expressly told not to do it?"

At Least They Planned Ahead...

"When I was in grade 8 we had a science class were we were supposed to be describing the properties of chemicals."

"We were shown how to waft the hand over a vessel to get a smell, not to taste it, etc and then were given a beaker of liquid to write observations about."

"We were constantly warned to follow the protocols we were taught."

"One kid grabbed his beaker, drank it down, and said it's water."

"He was immediately kicked out of class and later that day I heard the teacher talking about how at the last minute he decided to use water as a first chemical instead of an acid because of how stupid this one kid would be."

"He wasn't wrong."- Hammerhil

Message NOT Received...

"I worked tech support for copper phone lines."

"Had an old German sounding lady on the phone saying her phone was electrocuting her while she was holding it."

"The phone she was talking to me on."

"I told her to please stop using the phone and we'd send someone out to see what's going on."

"This lady just kept screaming about how bad it hurt to hold the phone and how much pain she was in."

"I was like lol just hang up idk what to tell you, but she just stayed on the phone in agony until I ended the call."- Grub-lord

To Think He Even Needed That Warning...

"Safety video: 'Do not stick your hand in liquid molten plastic'."

"5 minutes on plant floor Supervisor to Me: 'Hey, take Johnny to the hospital because he stuck his hand in molten plastic and has 3rd degree burns'."

"That was the end of Johnny."

"I never saw him again."- TimeWear6053

Penguin Stay Safe GIF by Pudgy PenguinsGiphy

"Test Dummy" Etymology?...

"The tech next to me was using canned air to clean a dusty computer."

"I noticed he was tilting the can to the side really far to get into the fans so I told him to be careful because if you tilt it too far it'll spray sub zero temp liquid that can freeze-burn your skin."

"He said 'really?' and then immediately turned the can upside down and sprayed directly into his palm."

"I was just speechless while he clutched his hand and cursed."- stanley_leverlock

Mother Knows Best...

"It was me."

"I saw a red hot burner, asked my mom what red feels like."

"She responds telling me not to touch it that it's very hot and will hurt me badly."

"I then decided I wanted to see what red felt like."- somedoofyouwontlike

Let's Hope This Wasn't In The Office...

"One that happens entirely too often."

"Tell the new guy do not watch porn on the company computers."

"Then I get a call from my boss saying the new guy got himself fired for watching porn."

"Seriously people, if it is on their network they can see it."

"Incognito mode will not save you."- Ok_Spell_4165

Homer Simpson Lol GIF by DemicGiphy

Bullseye!

"I was chaperoning a field trip where the 7th graders got to shoot compound bows."

"They were expressly told multiple times to NOT dry fire the bow (pulling back and letting go without an arrow)."

"One kid literally did that as soon as he was handed a bow and broke it."

"Luckily these were small/low strength pullback bows so he didn't get hurt, but he sure as heck got benched for the rest of class."- ConsultantForLife

Dory Can Relate...

"Picking up a box jellyfish and continuing to hold it the entire time it was stinging him."- Zoidberg_Why_Not_31

Being Fired Was The Best Case Scenario!

"Climb into a cardboard baler because he threw his phone in and wanted to check after he already crushed it."

"I yanked the key out, and he was fired immediately."- tryinandsurvivin

Wasted The Day By Wasting No Time...

'I worked in an aquatics store, and I told a new hire to be careful when working in the coral vats because the halogen lights got stupid hot (this was before LeDs and they were out the way of customers) so I told him not to touch."

"As soon as the words left my mouth, he stuck his fingertips on the light."

"Had to get him to A&E (accident and emergency or the ER for the Americans), and almost 20 years later, I can still hear the sizzle of skin."- Ulfgeirr88

Getting Angry Never Helps...

"Pour hot water on their icy windshield."

"Like 4 of us going into the corner store told her not to do it, one of the guys told her in Spanish."

"She looked at us for like a second holding the steaming cup of water."

"Then broke her windshield by pouring hot water on it."

"She then stared at it in total disbelief."

"One of the people who tried to warn her exclaimed in an extremely animated manner."

"Throwing his hands in the air then dropping them down near his knees 'We f*ckin’ told you'..then she cried."- MiasmaFate

When In Doubt, LISTEN!

"A guy I used to work with in a composites factory was moving a 10 ton mold from one part of a machine to another."

"The guys working with him told him not to rotate it after putting it down because he would drop it."

"He immediately rotated it, and it fell to the bottom of the machine, breaking lots of stuff along the way."

"He doesn’t work there anymore."- isurelovemylife

Satisfying Assembly Line GIF by Ricky TrickarttGiphy

He Won't Even Be Able To Count On One Hand The Number Of Times

"New hire running a press brake, which is a large machine used to bend sheet metal."

"The new hire was holding the part with one hand and resting his other hand on the bed of the machine."

"Three different times he was told to NOT put your hand on the bed."

"The last time he was told there was a large amount of four letter words used to try an impress upon him that you do NOT rest your hand on the bed."

"He would keep his hand away for awhile then go right back to it."

"He got into a rhythm and he placed his hand on top of the bottom dies rather than the bed."

"Top dies came down with 35 tons of force and crushed all four fingers"- Empereor_Norton

Maybe Don't Leave Children Unattended?...

"When I was 5 years old, my dad poured some sort of strong and relatively toxic deep cleaning liquid on our wooden dinner table to remove a stain."

"He jokingly told me not to taste it, and left the dining room for a moment while the deliciously green liquid was dissolving the stain."

"I stared at it for a while and proceeded to lick it."- TennoHBZ

And You Thought The TV Series Was Violent...

"Leaving the boardwalk in those areas of Yellowstone where you could break through the surface into a scalding hot spring."

"Also in Yellowstone, approaching a bison 'because they're so cute'."- merciful-tehlu

motion geyser GIFGiphy

It is amazing how much more everyone is tempted to do something after being told not to.

Even when doing so could cost us our jobs... and our fingers...

More from Trending

Donald Trump waving green flag at IndyCar race
Doug Mills/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

Trump Roasted After Video Of Him Aggressively Waving Start Flag At IndyCar Race Around D.C. Goes Viral

President Donald Trump was widely mocked after video footage of him waving the starting flag for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix on Sunday went viral.

Washington, D.C., hosted the inaugural Freedom 250 Grand Prix on Sunday, turning downtown streets, including part of Pennsylvania Avenue, into an IndyCar circuit as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebrations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump
Samuel Corum/Getty Images

The Trump Administration Just Canceled Major Funding For Alzheimer's Research Due To 'DEI'—And People Are Beyond Furious

Back in March 2025, it was revealed that the administration of MAGA Republican President Donald Trump had slashed funding for Alzheimer’s research as part of their purge of all things diversity, equity, or inclusion (DEI) related.

It was also later revealed that most of the cuts were done by Elon Musk's untrained, unqualified Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) personnel—who couldn't define or describe diversity, equity, or inclusion even after making $16.5 billion of initially listed cuts across 1,127 cancelled or adjusted federal contracts because of "DEI"—using AI filters.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Michelle Tafoya
C-SPAN2

MAGA Senate Candidate Called Out After Telling Dubious Story About Minnesota Friend's 'Dyed-In-The-Wool Democrat' Neighbor

Minnesota Republican Senate candidate and former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya was widely mocked for sharing a dubious "anecdote" about a conservative friend of hers and her "dyed-in-the-wool Democrat" neighbor."

In remarks to C-SPAN, Tafoya suggested that disaffected Democratic voters will have a notable impact on November's midterm elections, and proceeded to bring up a friend.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @Yegbuztv's X video
@Yegbuztv/X

Video Of McDonald's Worker Dropping Food On Floor Before Putting It Back On Tray Sparks Food Safety Debate

We've all heard of the "five-second rule," where when you drop a piece of food on a safe surface, you can still eat it if you've picked it back up within five seconds. Most people won't bat an eye at this when they're at home or with friends, again, if the food is dropped in a safe and clean location, like on a kitchen counter while making a plate.

But a floor really should never be included among the safe and clean surface options, especially when that floor is in a public space, and the five-second rule shouldn't even exist in food service spaces.

Keep ReadingShow less
Hayden Panettiere and Jack Coleman
Vera Anderson/WireImage/Getty Images

Hayden Panettiere's Dad On 'Heroes' Slams Paparazzi For Constantly 'Hunting' Her In Emotional Tribute

It's been less than a week since the death of actress Hayden Panettiere, and touching tributes have continued to pour in, including today on what would have been her 37th birthday.

One of the most touching came from Panettiere's on-screen father in Heroes, Jack Coleman, who explored all the stages of grief in one Instagram post, paired with lovely photographs on and off set.

Keep ReadingShow less