As humans, it's impossible for us to know everything, including the most efficient ways to do things.
But while we may know that, it's still frustrating when we discover there may have been an easier way to do something all along.
Even on TikTok, one of the top trends features users who discover a simpler, more efficient way to do something in their thirties or forties, before they robustly claim that they "learn more on TikTok than they ever did in school."
Fortunately for those who may not use the app, Redditors were ready to share their favorite finds in the thread.
Eager to learn more, Redditor slart_n asked:
"What everyday activity did you do wrong for years, before someone finally showed you an important trick?"
Restock Issues
"Not every day for everyone, but it WAS every cashier at my job... we had cigarette cases at the self-checkout that we could unlock and get packs out of for customers, so we didn't have to walk all the way to the big register to get them every time."
"Restocking them was a pain in the *ss, one pack at a time, pushing the little spring loader thing back with each one, squeezing them in next to each other..."
"We did it this way for years. It was how I had been shown how to restock them. YEARS. At least seven!! SEVEN. YEARS."
"And then one day I was pulling the price tags off to change them out, and one was a little stubborn. I gave it a little yank upwards and suddenly THE ENTIRE SHELF SLID RIGHT OUT ON ROLLERS."
"The way my jaw dropped. I think I actually swore out loud. It was SO MUCH EASIER to restock them. I ended up showing every single one of the other self-checkout cashiers, and every single one was blown away. Even the ones who had been there way longer than me."
"None of us knew the shelves pulled out. Not even the manager! She actually said, 'Are you f**king kidding me?!' when I showed her."
"I can't believe we all went that freaking long without knowing the shelves pulled out. Years of stocking those things one pack at a time. Then again, if we had known and been using it, they probably would have been broken like everything else in that place."
- TinyCatCrafts
Physical Gains
"I never thought I needed a workout routine as long as I worked different parts of my body on days until I watched an Arnold Schwarzenegger video on how he makes sure every single muscle gets hit in a three-day period. Since then I noticed more gains than I had made all year."
- NeverMindWait
Chopsticks and Pens
"Someone told me I used chopsticks wrong. I put the second one on the side of my ring finger, with my index and middle fingers on top of it. The person told me to just hold it like I would hold a pen, and I was like, what the f**k, this is how I hold a pen."
"Then I realized I hold a pen differently from most people."
"I've since retrained myself to hold chopsticks correctly, but I'm not even going to try to change how I write because it's just ingrained so deeply (and also, it doesn't really matter anyway)."
- Wegzuwerfendes_Konto
Remaking Beds
"Put on pillow covers. I used to shove the pillow in there and struggle with it until my wife showed me how to flip the pillowcase inside out and cover the pillow while flipping right side out."
- Immediate_Papayas
Hanging a Picture the First Time
"If you’re mounting something to the wall that has pre-designed holes on the back, rather than measure between the holes and try to space the nails/screws accordingly, stretch a single piece of painter's tape (blue tape) across the back of the piece from just before the beginning of the first hole to just after the last one."
"Mark each hole with a pencil/pen on the painter's tape, then place the tape on the wall and voila, you have a perfect mounting template. I suggest you do a quick check with a laser level on the wall just to make sure your marks are level before drilling."
"I work as a freelance handyman, and when my Dad showed me this trick it blew my mind. Seriously, ask a usually quiet and reserved Dad if he has any DIY hot tips and you’re bound to get some solid gold advice.
- darthva
How Was That, Now?
"Opening a beverage can."
"I keep my fingernails very short and sometimes it would be a bit finicky to open the tab on a can."
"I was d**n near 40 years old when my buddy showed me you’re supposed to push down on the hinge portion of the tab (the little dot toward the middle) with your thumb to raise the other edge of the tab so you can get your finger under it. I felt like an id**t."
- funklab
Text Editing Made Easy
"When texting, sliding your thumb on the spacebar of your phone will move the cursor."
- UnfairMicrowave
Goth Life
"Boots first, then corset."
- Ellesworth
Tomato Paste Push-Pops
"Those tiny, obnoxious cans of tomato paste. You can take both ends off with the can opener, and use a wooden spoon to push on the top. It comes out clean like a push-pop!"
- knittybitty123
Gift Card Identity
"Whenever a 'free' service asks for a credit card, I input the information from the back of a gift card. Trust no one on the internet."
- II_Confused
The Last of the Soap
"When the soap bar gets to the last sliver, you can just stick it onto the new bar to use it up completely."
- finlyboo
New Deoderant
"Taking the safety cap off of deodorant."
"I used to try to get my fingernails under it and pop it off. They were quite a pain in the a** to get off."
"In my late 20s, my roommate was talking to me while unpacking her groceries and she opened her deodorant and just twisted up the stick so that the cap came off. I was shocked."
- dinosarahsaurus
In-Kitchen Gardens
"Leek will continue to grow when put in water. When you have used all the green parts, and only the boring white stuff is left, put its roots in water for a few days and the green parts will grow back."
- scutterpikk
Wasted Produce
"Not an everyday activity, but someone showed me I'd been wasting celery for years. When it goes limp and loses its crunch, you can just soak it in water overnight, and it makes it crisp again."
"When celery goes limp, it's only because the water content has been reduced over time. Same with some other crunchy vegetables. I use the same trick with daikon radishes to make them fresh again."
- joec_95123
Dishwashing Efficiency
"You can take the silverware basket out of the dishwasher when unloading it."
"You can also set it on the counter next to the sink when you’re loading to keep from having to bend over to put things in the basket over and over."
- 877-Cash-Meow
While all of these lessons are pretty simple in and of themselves, they could make a big difference in someone's life if they've been taking a much more complicated route all this time, especially if they're in their thirties or later.
