World-renowned tech companies like Amazon, Google, and Tesla have managed to keep huge secrets from the public eye, whether they’re about products, partnerships, or upcoming projects.
But there are businesses in other sectors that also keep their lips tightly sealed when it comes to their inner workings.
To find out more about the practices that take place behind closed doors, one Redditor asked other platform users: “What dirty little secret does your profession hide that the consumer should know?” And the answers came pouring in.
As of this publication, the post has 11.5K upvotes and 9.2K comments, many of which reveal what we common folks aren’t supposed to know.
#1
Pilot here
The whole “turn off the cell phone” thing doesn’t matter 99.99% of the time. HOWEVER, it’s that .01% of the time that we worry about. Most cell phones nowadays, like iphones and androids, dont operate on the same frequency as the equipment we are worried about, but its that one guy with the cell phone made in mongolia in 1996 thats going to ruin it for everyone. Could we spend more time going through everyone’s electronics and saying “You can use this, this, this, and this but not that unless we are over 14,500 feet.” We could , but A.) it would take forever and B.) You wouldn’t remember it or get it right. So please, turn the damn thing off when we’re landing the plane.
Image source: CaptValentine, Jjborcean
#2
The larger the menu at a restaurant the greater the chance your food was frozen and just reheated.
Image source: MathewMurdock, tripadvisor
#3
I.T. When we can’t figure out why the servers crashed, we just turn them off and on again.
Image source: anon
#4
Sign Language Interpreting. A huge amount of them are underskilled and uncertified. When they don’t understand a Deaf person, they will simply make up a translation and the deaf person never hears it.
It leads to a lot of hearing people thinking a lot of Deaf people are morons, and a lot of Deaf people distrusting and being frustrated by hearing people patronizing them.
Image source: driftingdrifter
#5
Plumber here. There are so many things all of you are capable of doing/fixing around the home. I can’t tell you how many toilets ive fixed, shower drains unclogged, leaks stopped etc. that took no tools/ or a simple tool, in literally 2 mins. A 15 minutes educational video on how most of the plumbing in your house works would lose me maybe even a few thousand a month.
Image source: Liteheaded24x7, rick
#6
I’m a freelance copy-editor/proofreader.
A large portion of the books in my portfolio were previously published and “edited”. Meaning, the author paid someone to edit it already.
Why then, did they still want/need to hire me? Because they were still absolutely filled with errors, to the point where reviewers would comment on the poor editing.
In the freelance editing world, there seems to be no shortage of people who will take authors’ money but not do a good job. Typically these are random people on Fiverr and similar sites.
To avoid this, you should hire editors that come recommended by people you trust.
If that is not practical, then you should at least get an editor to do a sample edit (of 1000-2000 words). Perhaps throw in some errors on purpose.
If they catch those errors, or even errors you didn’t put in deliberately, then they’re good.
Image source: Celda
#7
The tops of your beer cans are gross. You should always wipe a beer can clean before drinking out of it, and preferably just poor it in a glass. They get s**t all over them during storage/transportation. They get walked on if someone needs to climb over the pallet they are loaded on. And don’t get me started on some of the s**t I’ve seen inside beer coolers. Disgusting.
Cans also don’t transport well on pallets. Cans pop/puncture and then that beer attracts flies which in turn create maggots.
-former beer delivery guy
Image source: anon, Mariano Avagnina
#8
High school teacher here: after a month of summer, I’ve already forgotten 90% of students’ names.
Image source: anon, U.S. Government
#9
When you ask for your drink ‘strong’ at the bar but refuse to pay for a double, we will just reverse the order of how we make your drink. Mix will go in first then liquor last. You think you are being slick by not having to pay for a double shot and you think we are a great bartender.
Moral of the story: don’t try to be slick with people who make your food or drinks.
EDIT: All of you who are stating that when you say ‘strong’ you want less mixer, are in the 1% of the entire population that expect ‘less’ mixer and the same amount of alcohol. The other 99% of people who use the term ‘strong’ want additional alcohol in the drink for free. That’s a fact!
If you wish to order a drink with less mixer in it, order the drink ‘short’ and we will make it with the same amount of alcohol and will use less mixer than usual.
If you wish to order a drink with more mixer than normal, order the drink ‘tall’ and we will make it with the same amount of alcohol and will use more mixer than normal.
Image source: Analytica0, Michal Lizuch
#10
You don’t have to be an Orthodontist to do orthodontics, just a dentist. Don’t subject your kids or yourself to braces/treatment unless the provider actually is certified in Orthodontics. It can make the difference between 7 years of treatment that reverses itself immediately and 11 months that lasts a lifetime.
Image source: qpgmr, Nenad Stojkovic
#11
Hotel manager. Most of the time the comforter is only changed when visibly dirty. Always take off the comforter and use the blanket in the closet, or ask them to bring you one.
Image source: ACOE_PWKE, Max Vakhtbovych
#12
I work in dry cleaning. One of the spotting agents we use is called digest, which is made of powdered cow stomach. The enzymes in the digest literally eat organic spots. It’s extremely effective.
You can DIY digest by applying saliva to food spots. I’ve removed blackberry jam from white cotton by just repeatedly spitting on the spot and scraping it clean. Warning: It takes a whole lot of time and saliva, and the process is disgusting–but free!
Image source: freyalorelei
#13
Paralegal here. Was your attorney able to settle your car accident case for a decent sum of money from the other driver’s liability policy? No they didn’t. The f*****g paralegal did.
Image source: tinaburgerpants
#14
I work at a living facility for special needs people. There’s honestly a very slim chance that your family member would be abused by the staff. However, depending on where they are placed (based on a number of factors) it’s highly likely they could be abused by their roommates and the facility won’t do a damn thing about it unless forced.
Image source: PrettyBird2011, Province of British Columbia
#15
Healthcare has become more oriented to customer service and satisfaction than patient care. Providers are at constant odds with administrators to balance profitable care with quality care which are polar opposites.
Image source: doctorhillbilly, Karolina Grabowska
#16
HVAC work, the amount of black mold in nursing homes is outrageous. If you’re considering putting an elderly family member in one, glance inside the a.c. unit or look at an air vent, you can see it too.
Image source: 4quil0n, SabbyOfSableWine
#17
Planetarium operator:
Nobody in the space sciences cares about constellations. They’re used to help define the location of astronomical objects, but I bet most astronomers don’t know the names of more than 5 or 6 constellations. I only talk about them because the general public finds them interesting for some reason – I would skip them if my boss would let me.
Image source: Deadmeat553, Петербургский Планетарий
#18
Teacher – it’s that time of year to make class placements for next year. Every year there are two or three teachers in the school (elementary) who are so awful, we cry over which students we have to ‘sacrifice’ to them and hope they are strong enough to survive a year with Mr. or Mrs. So-and-So.
Image source: PicklePucker, Max Fischer
#19
There is a reason why your bar has loud music on. If you can’t keep a conversation going you are going to be drinking faster and more likely to order another round.
Image source: stop_being_ugly, Marcus Herzberg
#20
Flight simulation engineer here: until Sully landed his Airbus in the Hudson, the average chances of surviving a commercial jet water “landing” were less than 5%. Highest recorded survival was the Ethiopian 767 with 29% survival. The seat back safety card and life vests were simply placebos for nervous passengers.
Follow-on: Sullenberger’s technique is now part of pilot simulator training so chances have increased. However if it happens in the ocean you might survive the crash but will almost certainly die of hypothermia, drowning or exposure.
Image source: chrisell, Julia Volk
#21
Your city doesn’t spend nearly enough making sure the infrastructure is decent.
Image source: Richard-Hindquarters, Ken Lund
#22
I Google probably 30%of what I fix. The only reason you can’t do it, is somehow the ability to Google well is difficult.
Image source: waldo06
#23
Never. Ever. trust tripadvisor restaurants and their food safety just because they got high ratings.
Image source: failkitten, Vuong Tri Binh
#24
There are some really bad dentists out there. And you probably don’t even realize it.
Most people stick with a dentist based on their insurance, chair-side manner, and how painful the injection is. Otherwise, they have no idea the quality of work that they are getting. I have seen some absolutely abysmal work, and ethically/professionally, I can’t tell the patient, “Hey, Dr. So-and-so did a real crappy filling and now you need a root canal because he screwed up.” Instead I tell them that ‘things happen’ and I’m the bad guy because the filling only lasted 1 year.
If you’re in a new town and looking for a new dentist, call a local endodontist and ask who he goes to. They see all the work from local general dentists and you can bet your a*s they’re going to the best one.
Image source: Kliarin
#25
Ramp agent here, I deal with airplanes from them coming to a stand, until they depart.
Your bags get manhandled. We can have 150 bags off then on in a 15 minute window, they have to get from the cargo door all the way to the middle. Bags with 4 wheels are the greatest thing since sliced bread since they just roll. Sports bags with no wheels are literally hurled down. (We mean no I’ll intention but there is no choice when you fly with the budget airline that rhymes with “Dryin hair”
#26
Not my main profession, but did some technical writing as a freelancer. Many companies actually pay people to post on social media and review sites and write positive fake feedback. So, when you’re on amazon and find someone writing a review about a skillet for example and they say “This is a great product, I really enjoyed it and the instructions were clear”, you know it’s a real person profile but with fake review.
Image source: hasslemind
#27
Your nurses and doctors talk about you in the break room.
Image source: anon, Vidal Balielo Jr.
#28
The teacher’s breakroom? That mysterious land of wonder that no student dare enter? Its a table and chairs with a counter with a sink and microwave. The teachers don’t have fun in there. For their 15 minute lunch break, they just plan or grade.
Image source: anon, Michael Mayer
#29
Lots and lots and lots and LOTS of animals die in the process of making your medicines. Get used to the idea.
#30
Screen printing shops are dirty as f**k and you should ALWAYS wash new shirts before wearing them.
Image source: Cookforfun, Mark Fischer
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