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People Share 37 Life Hacks They Learned Completely By Accident And Now Use Regularly
Article created by: Jonas Žvilius
There's something satisfying about outsmarting life by accident. You didn't Google, you didn't ask... You just figured out something totally by chance. It's almost like being rewarded for curiosity, or maybe even clumsiness.
It turns out some of the most brilliant and useful life hacks don't come from skilled inventors or in-depth "how to" tutorials, but rather from ordinary people who somehow stumbled upon something unexpectedly, and made it part of their adulting arsenal. Call it accidental genius.
Someone recently asked, "What’s the best “life hack” you’ve learned completely by accident?" and some really surprising answers came pouring in. Like the person who swears by standing on their heels while brushing their teeth. Or another who learned how to cheat the system, and save money, by requesting to cancel subscriptions.
Bored Panda has put together a list of the best tips and tricks that could change the way you do everyday things. Some are so simple that you might wonder why you never thought of them before...
We also reveal some surprising inventions that came about purely by accident. You'll find that info between the images.
This post may include affiliate links.
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#2
If you need to take a nap during the day but have difficulty falling asleep, try listening to a podcast or an audiobook while lying in bed. Obviously choose something that you don't mind missing out on, due to falling asleep. My favourite is a scary stories podcast that is good enough to keep me actually listening rather than my thoughts running all over the place, but not so captivating that it keeps me awake. :).
#3
Treat your house like a desire path. If you find yourself always dumping your shoes in a certain place, put the shoe rack there, not where you think it makes sense. Let your environment mirror what you do naturally and it'll be way easier to keep it cleen.
#4
Walk around any neighborhood at night gently saying "here kitty, kitty, kitty"...they appear out of the shadows.
#5
If you need to get something away from a toddler, just hold your hand out and say thank you. I think it tricks them into thinking they’re being helpful?
#7
Repeating the same gibberish word over and over in your head will help you fall asleep.
This is transcendental meditation. You're not meant to fall asleep, but I found that I certainly do. I now use it not to meditate, but to quickly get to sleep.
#8
My wellies got rainwater in them, but I really needed to wear them again. So I used plastic bags to line them. The plastic also made the wellies easier to slip on and off + added bonus, gave an extra layer of insulation. So if your wellies are a bit tough to get on and off, slip a plastic bag over your feet. Also, warm + cosy toesies:) .
#9
My maintenance guy took the front off my washer/dryer. At the bottom were about 20 mismatched socks. Apparently there is a small crack between the top of the washer and the tub area, where if you are just throwing in clothes, etc- socks can go through that crack. They end up in the bottom internally that you don’t see.
Not noticeable unless you knew about it. Solved my missing sock problem. Use a bag now or watch for the crack.
#10
If you are intending to read a storybook to a child or a group of children and you want them to focus on the book, begin by holding the book upside down and they will correct you, but turn the book 90% degrees clockwise and they’ll find it hilarious. Keep making this mistake a few more times before eventually getting it right. Then say if I make this mistake the children should shout “insert funny phrase”. They’ll pay attention to the story in order to catch you out later.
(Of course some children it won’t work with but it does with a majority).
#11
If you have something you're putting off (like doing dishes or writing a report), just promise yourself you'll only do it for five minutes. Most of the time, once those five minutes are up, you've already broken the inertia and you end up finishing the whole thing or making serious progress**.**.
#13
Putting a wet paper towel around warm beer and sticking it in the freezer, it will be cold in like 10-15 minutes.
#15
Check the card reader of the ATM. If someone's installed a skimmer, it would usually come off in your hand when moved.
#16
Put your single socks in the dirty laundry, no matter what. The other will turn up eventually. I haven’t lost a sock in years.
#17
When you're drilling holes in your walls to mount things but don't want to make a mess, grab a roll of the widest blue painter's tape you can find and rip off a decently long piece. Stick it to the wall, vertically, right under where you're drilling, but leave the top unstuck and hanging underneath like a little tongue/shelf.
Dust and shavings get stuck to the adhesive, and then you can just pull a little more off the wall and seal it by folding it. Then move onto the next hole until you run out of tape.
#18
You want to take a photo of a group of children all looking at the same time with nice, genuine smiles? Say “don’t look at my camera! Uh oh I think you’re going to look! Don’t do it!” etc. Kids all look at the camera while laughing, great photos achieved.
#20
When you want to move in to a new home, stalk the neighborhood, try to make conversation with some people. A bad neighbour can ruin all peace and comfort.
#22
Ear plugs for sleeping if you live somewhere noisy or near a main road.
I'd get tired with my noise canceling headphones on but taking them off let the noises wake me back up. Got some ear plugs from work and tried them out.
They even have different noise reduction levels available. I can still hear my alarm with them in.
#23
If you setup an account like Stash, Acorns or Onepay and set them to take a percentage automatically out of your paycheck every 2 weeks or whenever you won’t notice it and can build up savings faster.
#24
If a jar is too hard to open, take the edge of a key and lift the lid a tiny amount to release some of the air from the seal. Should pop right off.
#27
If u try to go and cancel a subscription a lot of times they’ll offer you a discounted rate for the next few months.
#28
If you ask someone to do something and they say no, just stand there silently. You wouldn’t believe the amount of times they change their mind.
#30
For a quick cold beer i'm adding salt to the ice bucket, it will take the water below freezing point.
#31
Forgot to salt pasta water. Realized adding salt after cooking and tossing works just as well.
#33
You can make perfectly good rice in a microwave. 3dl rice, 6dl water, splash of oil and a pinch of salt. Add sesame oil (optional). 20 minutes and done.
#35
If you're nauseous to the point where everything disgusts you but you still need to drink, take a sip of water and chew it like a mouthful of solid food.
#36
Use a screen reader for proofreading. (There's probably one built in to your software or app or browser or operating system, with name along the lines of Read Aloud or Speak)
This catches all the errors that your eyes and brain autocorrect, and also keeps you moving through the document at a steady pace so you don't have to do the labour of keeping yourself on task.
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