Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Explain Which Things They Thought Would Be Easy Until They Actually Tried Them

People Explain Which Things They Thought Would Be Easy Until They Actually Tried Them
Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

I'm a writer. It's both a talent and a skill. It takes hours and hours and hours and hours to refine. I get paid to do what I do because people trust me to do a good job. That's what makes me a professional.

So you might be surprised to hear that many people believe that writers dilly and dally all day long. This mindset carries over into the job market: Many writers are underpaid and undervalued. Many have to fight to set their own rates and freelancing can be both difficult and time consuming.

After Redditor CMBGamer2018TV asked the online community, "What was something you thought would be easy, until you tried it?" people chimed in with their own observations.


"I grew up on skis..."

Snowboarding. I grew up on skis and when I tried snowboarding I literally just rolled down the entire mountain like a slinky on the stairs.

Terds4Nerds

"But the jump again..."

Playing the guitar. The jump from not being able to play anything to playing basic chords and a couple songs you like isn't that much and it makes you feel like such a b@dass. But the jump again to a working musician is astronomical. I tried and just got burnt out and it wasn't fun anymore.

37bagsofdragonass

"Even just that very first part..."

A lot of the parts from that Ninja Warrior show. I'm a very physically fit guy and always thought that first course looked like a breeze.

Then I found a local gym with the different elements set up. Even just that very first part where you hop across a few platforms was tough.

ckuiper

"I understand it's far easier..."

Learning a second language, I understand it's far easier as an adolescent but, whew, conversational German for a English speaker is very hard for me.

antiquasi

"Has anyone tried..."

Has anyone tried to learn to do a handstand as an adult? How is that SO DIFFICULT.

schapnootmies

"When I was still in college..."

Maintaining a proper work/life balance. When I was still in college, I'd either procrastinate way too much or I'd work nonstop. I was never able to find a balance where I was still getting s*** done but not burning myself out.

yeetgodmcnachass

"I never really put much thought..."

Making (and maintaining) friends as an adult.

I never really put much thought into this, until I had no friends left in adulthood, and realized how easy it used to be as a kid in school in comparison.

MaeveTheBrave

"Faking it..."

I am not a really confident person but I keep working on my confidence. There was a time when I tried the "fake it until you make it" approach. Faking it is harder than expected.

theredditer91

"After renting a car..."

On the first trip to England:

After renting a car, it proved to be a considerable challenge to drive on the "other side of the road" from what I was used to - especially in the roundabouts and on major highways.

Back2Bach

"Why don't I..."

Oh, get a job? Just get a job? Why don't I strap on my job helmet and squeeze down into a job cannon and fire off into job land, where jobs grow on jobbies!

rnilbog

"As someone who's played for eight years now..."

Playing the drums well. As someone who's played for 8 years now, I can comfortably say that it is harder than it looks. To be able to keep time and stay 'in the pocket' for the entire song all while showing some technical ability is HARD. And I've seen so many new drummers just play rhythm but their, own, wonky, disjointed version and man it's frustrating.

Dessy1024

"On paper..."

College. On paper, as a child, you think that college is just adult school, but after not eating dinner for 3 days and having about $12.50 in my bank account, I can say with confidence that I was wrong.

SimpNation_24

"I don't do it as much now..."

Parkour.

I don't do it as much now and i do know some stuff but I still can't do a backflip. I'm too much of a b!tch.

DefinitNotKev

"Trying to interact with other adults..."

Being an adult. It absolutely f***** blows.

Trying to interact with other adults that have been curled throughout their life suck when you come from a home that raised you in the thinking that you carry the outmost responsibility for yourself and your own actions.

sloppyblacksmith

"I only found out in high school..."

Playing the piano. I love playing the piano when I was in elementary school but nobody for some reason would tried to correct me or tell me that I suck thus I embarrassed myself constantly in front of my music class whenever I volunteered to play the piano with me being literally oblivious on how much I suck. I only found out in high school that I played the piano wrong the whole time when my sister started to give me real lessons. Makes me wonder what my music teacher was thinking the whole time.

SophieCamuze

"I thought estrangement..."

I thought estrangement was gonna be easy. And, well, it is for the most part. 70% of the time it's stupid f****** easy. In that, well, I can bury it in some dusty corner and forget I am estranged.

However, there two times of the year which suck absolute @ss. The week leading up to my birthday and the late part of November through January 1st. These events always sneak up on me. I find myself in a s**** mood the days before Thanksgiving, scratch my head trying to figure it out, and then realize it's the holiday season. The one time of year where everyone talks, non-stop, about being with family/how great their family is/etc/etc/etc and I, willingly without family, have to listen to society tell me just how great they have it.

TBH, I low-key hate the holiday season. Especially since afterwards people always ask how it was for me and that's a damned if I tell the truth, damned if I lie, scenario. Either I tell them it was 'aWeSoMe PoSsUm, GrEaT!" and die inside because it was actually miserable OR I tell them it was miserable and watch them squirm because they suddenly realize how much it would suck to be in my position. I may honestly tell my friends just not to even ask how the holidays were for me, this year, just to save us that song and dance.

EgyptianDevil78

"They don't tell you..."

Using a compound bow. My dad pulls back the bowstring so effortlessly like it's a slingshot. Then I go to use it and it's literally impossible for me to even make it budge. They don't tell you that you need to be a bodybuilder to use one.

CurryNB

"Educated and fascinated..."

Parenthood. Do you love kids? Have a good job? Steady income? Good health benefits? Good car + home? Supportive spouse, family and friends to help out? Are you healthy and excited to have kids? Educated and fascinated on learning as much as you can to be a great parent? Awesome! It is still the hardest thing you'll ever do and you'll question everything you know and wondering if you made the wrong choice every. single. day.

rosinblush

"The image seems so perfect..."

Drawing human figures. The image seems so perfect in my mind until I try to actually put it on paper.

KipsyKakes

"Part of me says it's okay..."

Writing music. When I first started off producing, I was totally ignorant to music theory, song composition, etc. After years of doing it and taking a music theory 101 class, I still struggle with writing a cohesive song. It's easy to map out a very basic song: intro, verse, pre-chorus tease, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, chorus, chorus, outro. That's a fairly generic layout of a song. But whenever I'm writing the stuff, I go off on tangential riffs, and next thing I know I have a song that's intro, verse, pre-chorus tease, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, bridge 2, solo, bridge 3, verse, chorus that's also different.

Part of me says it's okay because it's my music and I can do with it what I like, but that also won't lead to other people liking it.

MaelstromNyxus

Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

screenshot of MS NOW interview of Texas voters
MS NOW

Texas Woman Has Blunt Correction For Her Conservative Husband After He Backs MAGA Senate Candidate During TV Interview

MS NOW correspondent Rosa Flores was in Brenham County, Texas, on Sunday to speak to voters about the Tuesday Republican Senate candidate runoff between incumbent GOP Senator John Cornyn and controversial Texas state Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Flores spoke with a married couple, Gayla and Michael Stefan. Gayla is described as an independent voter while Michael is conservative.

Keep ReadingShow less
Drew Carey; Spencer Pratt
Frazer Harrison/WireImage; Roy Rochlin/Getty Images

Drew Carey Urges People Not To Vote For 'Serial Scammer' Spencer Pratt For LA Mayor In Blistering Viral Post

Comedian and Price is Right host Drew Carey sounded off on people who plan to vote for or endorse Spencer Pratt—the former reality TV star of The Hills—for mayor of Los Angeles, calling Pratt "some serial scammer without a soul or moral compass."

Pratt announced his mayoral campaign roughly a year after his home was destroyed in the Pacific Palisades wildfire. He traveled to Washington to meet with then-Attorney General Pam Bondi and other federal officials about pursuing an investigation into California Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, whom he criticized over their handling of the disaster.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump
Evan Vucci/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

The White House Is Getting Dragged Hard After Bragging About Trump's 'Perfect' Physical

Following President Donald Trump's latest physical examination, the White House was called out for using its official X account to gloat about his "perfect bill of health."

Trump, who turns 80 next month, said on social media yesterday that “everything checked out PERFECTLY” following the fourth publicly-disclosed medical examination of his second term. It was not immediately clear whether the White House would release detailed findings from the president’s physician to back up the claim or specify what tests were included.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Donald Trump sleeping while Pete Hegseth speaks
@HQNewsNow/X

Video Of Trump Appearing To Fall Asleep During Memorial Day Ceremony For Fallen Soldiers Has People Outraged

President Donald Trump is facing criticism after video footage showed he closed his eyes and appeared to fall asleep at a Memorial Day ceremony honoring fallen soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.

Trump, who earlier that day faced criticism for Truth Social posts attacking Democrats and defending the war in Iran, marked the approaching 250th anniversary of American independence by calling it a “historic milestone” and saying “there could be no Independence Day without Memorial Day,” in tribute to fallen service members.

Keep ReadingShow less
Francesca Scorsese and Martin Scorsese (left)  attend a red carpet event as the actor addresses online criticism in a TikTok video (right).
John Shearer/FilmMagic via Getty Images; @francescascorsese/TikTok

Martin Scorsese's Daughter Responds To Cruel Comments About Her Looks With Viral Video—And Fans Aren't Having Any Of The Hate

Francesca Scorsese isn't letting internet trolls have the final word. The content creator and daughter of Martin Scorsese responded to appearance-shaming comments in a viral TikTok, prompting an outpouring of support from fans across the platform.

Last week, it was reported that the actor will appear in Season 2 of Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

Keep ReadingShow less