ADVERTISEMENT

Genius often lies in simplicity. Even if it sounds off. So, to figure out the true capacity of human ingenuity, one person recently turned to the place that holds all the secrets to our collective intelligence - Reddit. Now, it's not important whether or not you caught my sarcasm; 1 month ago, redditor NecessaryPrudence posted a question on the platform asking, "What is so stupid but it actually really works?" and it immediately went viral, generating nearly 12,000 upvotes and 4,478 comments. From soothing bug bites with hand sanitizer to putting ice cubes in the dryer with a garment that needs ironing, here are some of the best replies, proving that if something looks stupid but does the job -- it isn't stupid!

#1

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Stay at least a year behind in technology and gaming. Better, yet, two. You'll save a s**t-ton of money.

DFSdog , JESHOOTS Report

NecessaryPrudence told Bored Panda that they have had quite a few random conversations with friends and family that sometimes produced silly but somewhat interesting thoughts and questions, and it was what inspired this post, too.

"It's not something I intentionally came up with," NecessaryPrudence said. "Not even a serious conversation, but rather just chitchat."

The original poster has done things they would consider "really stupid" that actually worked out well. It made NecessaryPrudence relate to a lot of the answers, they said.

#2

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver I work in a hospital and when I'm doing something scary I tell kids that whatever they do they must not laugh.

_A_ioi_ , cdc Report

Reading the replies, they also realized that people have varying perceptions of what "stupid" is. "Is it really that stupid if it actually works? Maybe they see things as stupid because they don't see themselves doing these things until they find themselves actually doing it and get favorable results. The thought after the 'stupid' deed is what's funny," NecessaryPrudence summarized the post.

But what really defines an act as "stupid"? To find the answer to this question, Balazs Aczel and Bence Palfi of Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary teamed up with Baylor University's Zoltan Kekecs and analyzed various real-life examples. They first built a formidable assortment of 180 stories describing stupid actions, collected via the internet and from daily reports provided by a group of 26 college students. Then, a group of seven raters reviewed all of the stories to ensure that they described a "stupid" action, were comprehensible, and were relatively brief.

ADVERTISEMENT
#3

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver If you want someone you don't know well to like you, ask them for a small favor.

When I get new coworkers I go out of my way to ask them for something little, like borrowing a stapler or giving an opinion on something I'm working on.

Then they feel like they can ask me for something next time they need help, and soon I've tricked them into thinking I'm a nice person.

I don't know why it works but it does.

flyting1881 , fzeo Report

Add photo comments
POST
blakkursverrir avatar
Blakkur Sverrir
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Can't remember where I read it, but there actually is a scientific study that found out that people who DID YOU a favour are thinking better of you and are more likely to give you another favour, than people that YOU DID a favour. Seems strange. Feels like it should be the other way. But it's true

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

From the data, the researchers distilled three key categories that make an action stupid. "The first situation in which people call an action stupid is when the actor takes high risks while lacking the necessary skills to perform the risky action," they explained. "A typical story for this is when burglars wanted to steal cell phones, but instead stole GPS navigation devices. They didn't switch them off so the police were able to track them easily. We named this category 'Confident ignorance.'"

#4

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver I've worked in mental health for years. I can't tell you how many people tell me what a good listener I am..because I just shut up and let people talk.

It's not rocket science, but the large majority of people just want to feel like their voices are being heard. Too many therapists and providers don't know how to be quiet and stop loving the sound of their own voices.

DeadSharkEyes , RobinHiggins Report

Add photo comments
POST
chi-weishen avatar
chi-wei shen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Thinking loud can help you in many situations not only in mental health. This loud thinking works best if there is someone to listen to you.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT

The second cluster consisted of cases of "Absentmindedness—Lack of practicality." "A typical story here is when someone inflates more air in the car tires than allowed. Here the person either forgot to pay attention to the action or he or she doesn't know something essential about tire inflation."

Finally, the third category is "Lack of control." "Cases here are thought to be the result of obsessive, compulsive, or addictive behavior. For example, one of the stories in this category described a person who canceled a meeting with a good friend to instead continue playing video games at home," the researchers explained.

There you have it. Now, the next time your friend falls on their face while attempting to ride a shopping cart, you can tell them exactly why they were acting stupid.

#5

Exercising once per day

cutting down on caffeine after noon

keeping your phone out of your bed

reading light fiction at bedtime

keeping a notepad and pencil next to your bed

Then you will fall asleep on time.

Syntactic_Acrobatics Report

#6

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver My aunt puts her expensive jewelry in a zip lock bag, and her cheap jewelry in the jewelry boxes. She apparently had a lot of her jewelry stolen in the past by family. She now only has the cheap stuff stolen.

tminor787 , kylefrederick10 Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#7

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Feeling tired, headache, muscle cramps? Drink water. It is amazing how many people walk around in a state of dehydration. Water is an amazing fluid that solves a lot of problems.

GreenSalsa96 , R4vi Report

Add photo comments
POST
t-pointeau avatar
Nevid
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Don't feel tired? No muscle cramps? No headache? Drink water anyway. Don't wait being dehydrated in the first place and drink water regularly.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#8

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver I don’t even know what made them think of it, but some researchers filled iPods for their elderly, confused clients with their favorite music. When they listen to the music, they are calm, recognize people better and are generally more cognizant.

readerf52 , herbert2512 Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#9

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Putting a piece a duct tape on your bike seat so people won't steal it.

Who wants to try and sell a potentially ripped bike seat, let alone buy one.

ElBeatch , American Cyclery Official Report

#10

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver For me personally, I make a to-do list but put like 3 or 4 things that are just mind-numbingly simple. I knock them out, cross them off, feel productive, and feel motivated to hammer out the tougher pieces.

boyvsfood2 , Suzy Hazelwood Report

Add photo comments
POST
julija-mich avatar
B-b-bird
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is my forever habit. And I should say not only it makes your life more simple, it keeps you productive and aware. One tip... if you started noticing that you have sooo many things on a list, AND by the time you accomplished them and crossed out... even more thing you had to add, AND it's like never ending story of piling up even though you are utilizing all your daylight hours. AND this piling up is stressing you, AND you need to highlight or put exclamation mark next to those with higher priority.... ...then your workload is too big, time to stop, take a breath and do something about your load. Health of your body and mind is of highest priority.

View more commentsArrow down menu
#11

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver My anti-clothing static device. I think I learned about this on reddit.

I live in a dry climate and static cling was always a problem. I really dislike fabric softeners for multiple reasons, but this trick solved the problem.

Take an old cloth (mine is a cloth napkin) and pin 7-10 big safety pins to it. Just toss it in the dryer with your clothes. The safety pins hit the sides of the dryer, continually grounding your laundry.

mference123 , stevepb Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#12

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver If you think someone is following you, literally act as crazy and stupid as you can. It is so stupid but the other person is usually so freaked out they leave you alone

Zedfourkay , Transformer18 Report

#13

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Taking a shower to remedy any ailment. Prescribed by my mother. Headache? Take a shower. Anxious? Go take a shower with lavender. Have a cold? Get in the shower with Vix vapor rub. It's not a cure all, but I guarantee it always makes me feel less bad than before.

essenkay , tookapic Report

Add photo comments
POST
lsoo avatar
Raine Soo
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Having a shower always makes me feel better. I hate getting into bed feeling grubby.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#14

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver "The Superhero Stance"

Stand up straight. Chest out, shoulder back, hands on hips, chin slightly elevated.

It's so f**king stupid. But damned if you don't start to believe your own fake superhero hype.

PolloMagnifico , lucaslenzi Report

#15

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Telling your little kids to clean their room is a guaranteed way to get them to spend the day playing with their toys.

skulltvhat , Design_Miss_C Report

Add photo comments
POST
els_g avatar
Elsker
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

true... but then you still have to clean up de room yourself. so if anyone has tips to get them to actually clean?

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#16

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Putting hand sanitizer on bug bites. It's the most glorious feeling and it works better than any itch spray!

stoneyevora , hiroo yamagata Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#17

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Long story short: A boorish guy was bullying my grandfather at a movie theater. My grandpa turned around and literally blew air on his face. The man was so weirded out that he left the theater.

jollysystem75 , jakehills Report

Add photo comments
POST
ortaduchess avatar
Stephanie Did It
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I would NOT do that during this pandemic, it would be construed as a physical attack and could get you hurt or in deep trouble!

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#18

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver My depression makes it hard for me to do chores on command, but I figured out that if I set a timer or give myself some time to psych myself up, then I do it. It doesn’t always work, but 85% of the time I end up succeeding, and it’s a huge leap from a few months ago when I just shut down over chores.

HouseFanatic64 , Sadia Report

Add photo comments
POST
katd_1 avatar
Malakai
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is a great tip. I'm going to start trying this and see if it helps--thank you for sharing! :)

View more commentsArrow down menu
#19

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver If you think someone is watching you in a crowd, yawn. If they yawn too, they are watching you. Yawning is contagious!

colmatrix33 , mluotio83 Report

#20

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Smile when you talk on the phone and you sound much happier than you really are.

worrymon , nastya_gepp Report

#21

Eating off a smaller plate. That trick helped me lose 80lbs.

jimvv36 Report

Add photo comments
POST
cuddlewoozle avatar
Cuddles
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's true. You can't eat what won't fit on the plate. Although if you're going back for more it's not really gonna help much.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#22

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Dressing well at work. You can be an amazing worker but people really do judge you by how you look. And by well I mean looking put together and professional. This applies for trades/blue collar work as well as white collar. I’ve worked both.

lefouilly , Darrell Jesonis Report

Add photo comments
POST
chi-weishen avatar
chi-wei shen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This works almost everywhere, not only at work. If you wear formal clothes at work and go to a supermarket before going home you might see the difference.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#23

If you always forget if you have locked the door/closed the oven/charged your smartphone/... do something stupid after you did the thing you're about to forget. You won't remember the actual locking, but you'll remember the stupid thing, and then you'll know you did the thing. Stupid things include doing a little dance or pirouette, singing a small song (rickroll yourself!) or saying something really stupid like "I'd like to eat a towel right now!".

Erycius Report

#24

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Wash your hands in shaving cream to remove fish/onion/nasty smells.

Rednecknrusty , mwa206 Report

Add photo comments
POST
cam_s_whalley avatar
Wubbleyew
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm more impressed with the face in the foam than the hack itself

jmscargill avatar
ortaduchess avatar
Stephanie Did It
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You can also rub them with a stainless steel spoon while washing them and the smells will disappear. Works on everything: garlic, onion etc.

lsoo avatar
Raine Soo
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A friend of mine once told me to wash my hands with toothpaste to get rid of bad smells. I've tried it, and it does work.

martti avatar
ML
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

By the look of the shaving cream, it also does not like onion or fish smell

c_lee_8920 avatar
Courtney Christelle
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Rubbing your hands on stainless steel. We have a stainless steel faucet and whenever I chop onions or something I rub my hands on it... I probably look insane but it works.

suzi63 avatar
Suzi Gauthier
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Or rub them with stainless steel - I usually use a spoon & rub it on my hands while I wash them. Works with garlic too.

meliorista avatar
Kappy Pfeiffer
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Adding your favorite scented hand lotion as you wash your hands helps remove scents, too.

aimeemsimmons avatar
Aimee Simmons
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

steel soap bars work equally well, and last forever. Less expensive.

kateh_1 avatar
kate h
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Never tried that, but if you have a stainless steel sink just wet your hands and rub them on the stainless steel. You can buy "stainless steel soap" but the sink is free.

onemessylady avatar
Aunt Messy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

For nasty smells on your hands, try an old waitress trick. Rub the cheapest mustard you can find ( like French's) into your hands like lotion. Then wash them in soap and water as hot as you can stand. ...///... We used to have to bleach everything down at night, and this NEVER fails.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#25

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Watching movies you've already seen to help you fall asleep

gemini88mill , StockSnap Report

#26

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Positive self talk

cyber_buddy , leninscape Report

Add photo comments
POST
jmscargill avatar
Scagsy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is going to be a real kick-a*s comment and get loads of upvotes!

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
See Also on Bored Panda
#27

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Facial expressions affect your mood. Just faking a smile can help boost a meh or bad mood. Just squinting in the sunlight can bring your mood down. So spend time smiling and wear sunglasses.

dudius7 , Pexels Report

Add photo comments
POST
katrinaim avatar
Clandestine
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I did this when I was in a low place and it helped a lot! I wish we were wearing masks then, would have made it easier.

View more commentsArrow down menu
#28

People resent being emotionally manipulated, so don't do it. Ever.

You might get something in the short term when you try to 'butter up' or trick a person, but if you instead are civil and clear about what you want they will not spend days plotting revenge.

Substantial_Quote Report

Add photo comments
POST
chi-weishen avatar
chi-wei shen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Don't spend days plotting revenge! If you got manipulated by someone address this problem and, if necessary, avoid that person in future, but do not waste your time, your energy, and your mental health with plotting revenge.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#29

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Yell “strength of a bear!” before lifting something heavy

chamoisjuice , Ichigo121212 Report

#30

Person Asks "What Is So Stupid But It Actually Really Works?" And 30 People Deliver Wearing two pairs of socks, one thin pair under a thick pair. Sounds stupid. it helps wick the sweat away from your feet reducing stinky feet and crusty socks.

Bobby6k34 , LUM3N Report

Note: this post originally had 58 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.