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People Are Anonymously Sharing Secrets From Their Jobs That They Aren’t Supposed To Share In A Viral Online Thread
It’s no secret that the real action always happens behind the scenes. Think of how little we know about things unless we actually become a part of it; in that way, you are likely to never play slots if you've ever designed a slot machine.
Sounds like a metaphor, but it isn't. Recently, one Redditor posed the question “What’s an industry secret in the field you work in?” and amassed 82.4k upvotes. Comments started buzzing and reached a count of 38.3k, with people spilling all their industry secrets in plain sight.
From dentists to auto insurance agents and librarians, these workers couldn’t miss the opportunity to share some insider’s knowledge on simple things, like buying clothes at Goodwill.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
I’m a teacher. If you as a parent will read with your child often and early, your child will thrive in school. I’m talking daily books read together from newborn to about third grade. Every single day. No teacher can replace that.
RELATED:
#2
I'm not training your dog, I'm training you.
It’s no secret that every industry has its own secrets that remain virtually invisible to the people outside of it. So Bored Panda has contacted a US Goodwill employee who preferred to stay anonymous, to find out whether it’s true that half of the donated goods end up in the trash, as stated in the thread.
The Goodwill employee said that the staff has always followed guidelines and if anything is unsellable, it gets tossed. “People donate bags of clothing, some are stained, have holes, or are in some way unpresentable. Donated electronics are a hit or miss. Sometimes we test them and if they don’t work, garbage.”
#3
I'm a server. No matter how much we insist it's "okay" that you are keeping the entire restaurant open after we've closed, please know we are 100% lying. We will get fired if we deviate from anything other than pure delight that you are keeping us from going home. We dread it. Please don't believe us.
H Edwards 3 years ago
The American attitude that customers can do no wrong just leads to people taking advantage to a ridiculous degree. It also means that on those occasions where you absolutely have to say no to a customer, they may well have a fit like a spoilt toddler because they aren't used to hearing it.
#4
Human Resources: we exist to protect the agency from the employees, not the other way around.
Other unsellable stuff which gets thrown away includes anything that has “major cosmetic damage” or anything else that “would prevent its sale.” This may be “that pair of earbuds in the bottom of your donation bag.”Once, “I had a set of speakers covered in what I hope was maple syrup.”
Sometimes, it's “wares or household items: if it’s damaged in any way, it’s tossed.”The Goodwill employee says that “Bottom line is, people find it's cheaper to donate things rather than throw them away.”
Sadly, according to them, “it is rare to find newer items with tags on them.”But it also depends on the demographic. “For example, a Goodwill will have less valuable items in Detroit than upstate New York,” they explained.
#5
Plumber here. There's no such thing as a flushable wipe. The package lies. You drains WILL clog, and fast; your landlord will charge you; it’s going to suck. Throw wipes in the trash if you use them; toilets paper is the only acceptable wipe.
Not a secret at all, just not common knowledge somehow.
Foxxy (The Original) 3 years ago
Yes, this. My mum used to use washable wipes until I told her, she didn’t believe me coz they said they were flushable until she looked it up for herself. These should not be sold as flushable wipes.
#6
A lot of librarians will waive your fines if you have an excuse and you don’t ask too frequently, even large fines. Also, librarians DON’T CARE about your fines and aren’t judging you. Please come back. We personally have more fines than you. Librarians are ALWAYS overdue with their books.
#7
I'm an attorney. The secret is shut the hell up.
Paul K. Johnson 3 years ago
Which is why no Trump attorney has ever wanted him to testify because any time he does he will blow his own case bigly!
#8
Knowing how to research the answer to a question is at least as or even more useful than knowing the answer to begin with. I made a living in IT for a decade with that mindset.
Miss Milinky 3 years ago (edited)
I have been seen as a font of all knowledge at work for years...would have people from other departments coming to ask for help doing this/that/the other because they'd "heard about" me as some sort of office/process/IT/program encyclopaedia. I am not this. I just know how to google and am good at thinking of logical keywords to search the system by. 85% of their problems would disappear if they just calmed down and spent 5 minutes running searches. They haven't figured that out and I'm not going to tell them.
#9
Managed boarding and grooming kennels for 8 years: the secret is that the employees actually do love your pets too. Even the difficult ones, most of us realize they just miss their people. The number of times I’ve weeped when a pet died, or spent way too many hours comforting a dog with separation anxiety, or spent hours off the clock with a boarder who needed to be rushed to a vet office...wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Some pets just suck though, not gonna lie.
But these are not the only secrets in the donated goods industry. The Goodwill employee said that “where I worked, there were no price tags, so you had to select the price written on it at the cash register” and it “took forever.”
Moreover, “people rub off the prices all the time and ask for it to be repriced.”Oftentimes stuff sold in charity and non-profit shops get scouted by resellers. “There are always resellers checking values of everything on eBay. Speaking of resale, it is a known problem that people run “kahoots “ and sell stuff lower to employees who resell it online. Strict rules at my Goodwill stopping that, but issues elsewhere,” the employee commented.
Meanwhile, if you’re wondering why there are so few better-value goods in your local American Goodwill, it may be because “anything of true value gets sent off to a blue boutique store (owned by goodwill) to be individually priced.”
#10
I design slot machines for casinos... Don’t play slots.
Haunting Spirit 3 years ago
In Europe there are actual rules that slot machines have to follow. Although you'll always end up loosing of course.
#11
Teacher: The parents are more of a hassle than the students.
I doubt that is a secret, but there it is.
Jojo Dancer 3 years ago
As a teacher of 15 years, I 100% agree with this. It's one of the leading causes of teachers leaving the profession these days...
#12
I’m a dentist. Here’s the lowdown on toothpaste.
As long as it has fluoride they are all basically the same.
When I was in dental school, the [Tooth paste brand] lady came by and said that everything that says [Toothpaste brand] on it is all exactly the same, the only difference is the packaging. So whether it says whitening, or gum protection, or whatever else, it is all exactly the same.
The exception is sensitivity toothpaste typically does have an extra active ingredient. KNO3, which helps with sensitivity.
Don’t ever feel obligated to buy the expensive toothpaste because you think it will be better for your teeth, just buy whatever you like best.
#13
As a beginner counselor I worked with a lot of children and adolescents. Consistently the discussion with my colleagues was how it was the parents who were the biggest problem and the kids were just adapting to a crazy environment.
#14
Not an industry I work in per se, but I used to be in a sales role. One of my customers was a milk bottling plant. I was somewhat surprised that they were putting the exact same milk in both organic and non-organic cartons. Turns out all of their milk is organic, but in order to not miss out on the sales of non-organic milk, they just bottle them differently and sell them at different prices.
Péter Rózsahegyi 3 years ago
So they were profitable on non-organic price level and sold their milk on organic price, too, with extra profits. Smart…
#15
Piss off one nurse; you piss off ALL the nurses.
Paul K. Johnson 3 years ago
I got into it with a patient once and I was wrong. Half the staff went at him as well and I had to get them all to back off and explain that it was my fault, not his. And when they calmed down I went to apologize to the patient. And what actually happened is that I was enforcing a policy that had changed and none of us knew about it because communication where I work sucks. You have to know what walls to read when you come to work or you won't know what's going on.
#16
I’m a fossil replicator and apparently the industry secret is the fact that we exist. So many people are blown away to learn that most fossils they see in museums are replicas.
Rose the Cook 3 years ago
Not just the fossils many of the other exhibits are replicas for insurance purposes.
#17
Scientists: We disagree with one another a lot more often than the media would often lead you to believe.
The reason we're good at our jobs though is that (ideally) we like disagreeing with each other and we are able to move on when proven wrong. It's a part of the job.
Paul K. Johnson 3 years ago
You're not much of a scientist if you stick to your theory when the evidence shows it to be wrong. Science is self-correcting. It just takes longer when stubborn scientists are involved.
#18
I’m a musician. It’s not really a secret but 90% of of our revenue is from merch. Spotify plays, show guarantees, etc, everything is menial in comparison to shirt sales. In fact, a big reason bands tour as often as possible is because we can sell more shirts when we’re in front of people.
#19
Construction boy here. If your windows or sliding doors are tough to open and close. 9 times out of 10, we put your own dish soap on tracks and the thing works perfectly. It take 5 minutes and we charge 150. Dish soap people, its better than WD40 sometimes.
Rosie Hamilton 3 years ago
Our window installer suggested furniture polish to make things run smoothly - so far it's worked.
#20
Former aircraft fueler. Don't check your pets in kennels. Especially in summer or winter. They are submitted to some very harsh environments, left on belt loaders in the sweltering heat right next to a running APU that's loud enough to deafen human ears, let alone a dog's. It's terrible. I always feel so sorry for them.
American Airlines will destroy your luggage. They get overloaded on carts, fall off on the way to the plane, and are left there to get run over by tankers and yes, fuelers, and rained on, then dragged to the edge of the ramp to sit all night while you arrive at your destination and wonder where the hell your bags are.
If your departure is delayed, 90% of the time it's us (the fueler). Look out the window to the right side if it's a small plane, left side if it's a really big plane. If there's a truck sitting under the wing, we're the reason you're late. Sorry.
#21
This seems to be a secret to many customers; it actually pays off to be patient and polite if you need the staff at a store to resolve an issue or help you with something.
Paul K. Johnson 3 years ago
Who could have known that treating people with respect will result in them being more helpful?
#22
Some therapists/counselors are on the wrong side of the couch, so to speak. If you feel your mental health provider is unhinged, they may very well be.
Paul K. Johnson 3 years ago
As a mental health worker, I can tell you that it takes one to know one.
#23
Used to screen resumes for small companies. Job "requirements" are more of a wish-list situation. Never let some unchecked boxes deter you from applying - you have no idea what the applicant pool is like. The biggest boon, especially at small companies, is someone who legitimately cares.
Rosie Hamilton 3 years ago
Different countries, different rules. UK Equal Opportunities Act 2010. If you call yourself an Equal Opps employer the way you screen applicants can be very specific. All the companies I've worked for we screen based on whether or not the person meets the requirements laid out in the job description and person spec. Score 0 if you don't have the requirement, 1 if they mention it and 2 if they give an example of using the requirement in a job or life situation. The people with the highest scores - the top 10 or so - are invited for interview. This is about preventing discrimination, on paper/online application you can't judge much else so it isn't about 'caring'. Once you get them in for interview then you can start evaluating team fit and so on. No, not all companies do this and don't let it stop you applying but best to assume they might and come up with as many ticks and examples as you can.
#24
Former industry: commercial radio.
It's never caller 5. It's the caller who sounds best on air.
heidi hunt 3 years ago
I dont understand how they even hear your voice. When trying to be caller say 10 and u call they don't speak if u get thru the dj will say something like ur caller number 8 try again as soon as the answer. You haven't even spoken yet. Most u say is OK thanks
#25
Auto insurance agent. Please, for the love of god, don’t tell auto insurance agents more than you have to. They ask you a question, just say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and answer the question as straight as you can. If you go on and on about your life story, you will probably end up saying something you don’t have to and making your rate higher, or getting yourself declined. We WANT to get you that policy as cheap as possible, only tell us what we need to know and don’t say anything else.
Yeah, you heard 3 years ago
Who phones an insurance company? Doesn't everyone just compare prices online these days?
#26
Former bath and body works associate here. The scents they “discontinue” will come back with a different name and new marketing. They’re just recycling the scents.
#27
I'm a massage therapist and the biggest secret is stretching if you stretch properly you will get rid of effectively 90% of the problems but no one is taught how to stretch properly The best stretches are actually the stretches you learn in middle school hold still count to 10 take deep deep breaths move on.
I'm not going to lie this post has blow up a lot more than I expected and I'm just going to give a guess a little more information. The whole point of stretching is to do the opposite motion of what the muscle does whenever it's in use and the whole point of stretching is also to alleviate pain and bring circulation to the area and regulate the muscles basic systems. So here's the basic rule if you hurt somewhere do not stretch that place find the opposite muscle in the opposite movement and stretch THAT ONE. The way the body works is kind of like a giant game of tug-of-war muscle actually controls the movement of bone and helps with your posture , no one has perfect posture though. so stretching make sure that nobody wins the tug of war and that your bones remain in place is close to perfect posture as possible, which means that your bones and ligaments don't take any damage from gravity or any other force that affects your body during your daily life. I will not lie however if you do have injuries like if you broken or torn or dislocated or separated something that pain will never go away it will dissipate and it will get to a lower level in which your body will be able to tolerate on a daily basis but it will never go away The body can never correct something that's been broken. this should help you be able to search your own stretches online but apparently I need to make a YouTube channel. just thinking opposites if you're back hurts look for stretches for your front like in your chest in your core if the front of your legs hurts you need to stretch the back of your legs if the front of your arms hurt stretch the back of your arms just do the complete opposite of wherever you hurt and start stretching that area and you should notice pretty quickly that it's tighter when you stretch the side that does not hurt then versus when you stretch the side that does.. if I make a YouTube channel I'll make the post here somewhere in the comments so people can find it good luck!
#28
There is way more butter than you think in almost every dish you eat at fancy restaurants, and that is usually the reason you won't see the amount of calories in each dish.
Source: 5 years as a chef in Italian cuisine head chef, 8 years in an Italian kitchen.
#29
At Goodwill, we don't clean anything that we sell, and we get some really gross stuff that touches everything else so next time you buy something from Goodwill, wash it well.
#30
As a former TSA worker airport security is alot of theater. TSA is constantly failing plain cloths inspections. I worked with a guy who got fired because someone showed him an ID with a picture of Micky Mouse on it and he let the person through because he wasn't paying attention.
Nadine Debard 3 years ago
But not in every airport and not in every country. I saw an employee verifying the ID of a baby by making him look at her to check the picture on his documents.
#31
The ice cream machine isn’t broken, the f'*ckers were just too lazy to clean it, or more likely, none of the people working that day know how. It’s a b*tch and takes like 4 hours. It shuts off and makes you clean it, so rest assured it’s gonna be clean. Just not when you need it.
#32
A huge portion of online reviews, ratings, social media presence, etc that you see for any given company are fake, paid for, or done by multiple accounts controlled by us. This includes a company’s Glassdoor page (fake reviews about how great it is to work there so that the million negative reviews don’t crush their page).
I’m not saying it’s every company out there, but it’s been a lot of the ones I’ve worked for.
Source: am copywriter. What are ethics? I surely don’t know anymore.
#33
Federal HR here, if you put the words from the vacancy announcement about what you need to qualify in your resume you’ll almost always be qualified, we search for those words instead of reading an entire resume.
Nadine Debard 3 years ago
Most of the time people don't adapt their resume to the job they apply for, this is a huge mistake. Just show me how you can use your experience in this new job and you'll get it!
#34
The fruits and veggies you buy at the grocery store... Wash them.
#35
Amusement park ride operator here. If your kid is crying and you want us to stop the ride, even if we want to it’s not gonna stop immediately. The carousel will spin a few more circles or the ship will swing a few more times before stopping. The only exceptions is the emergency stop which will absolutely f**k up the ride for a while if we press it. Hence we only use it in actual life threatening situations. The best thing you can do is try to get your kid to calm down as the ride comes to a stop and no, yelling “Stop the ride” at us does not make it stop any faster.
WilvanderHeijden 3 years ago
Also, by jelling "stop the ride" you confirm to the child that it is in danger and needs to get out as soon as possible. Which could lead to some panic moves that could seriously injure the kid or even worse.
#36
In Microsoft office, word specifically, you can upload recorded interviews and it will transcribe it and ever have speaker one and speaker two, three and four! Basically, eliminating a huge annoying part of the job.
#37
At goodwill 50% of what you donate ends up in the trash because we don’t have the space for it or we just deem it too ugly.
Sol Connor 3 years ago
It’s very sad how much charity shops bin actually. And it costs them money to have those skips emptied. Please only donate stuff that someone else will buy unless it’s rags. Put all your holey socks and stained t-shirts in a bag and label them rags so they can be recycled and no-one has to touch your small s!
#38
The off brand products are created in the same factories as the name brand products a surprising amount of the time. The product itself is the same with different packaging and a lower retail price.
#39
When it comes to retail:
If you're night crew, day crew just dicks around all day, and doesn't get anything done, leaving all of the work for you.
If you're day crew, night crew just dicks around all night, and doesn't get anything done, leaving all of the work for you.
#40
Firefighters are trained on several areas and can specialize deeper into certain disciplines. Most of the emergencies we get called to are situations we have never been trained on, but with 4 of us on a firetruck we can normally figure out a solution.
Nagawa (Cofa) Kishiki 3 years ago
I like to department that train fighter in rescuing cat on tree.
#41
I'm in Cybersecurity and deal mostly with the largest companies and government's in the world. Every one of them has been breached, to carrying degrees, by the Russians and Chinese. Almost daily. It's not a matter of if they'll get in It's a matter of how long they'll be there, and how much damage they'll do, before you find them.
#42
The cocktail you just bought might cover the cost of the entire bottle we used to make it.
Yeah, you heard 3 years ago
Wow, shocking to discover bars are making a profit from selling drinks
#43
New construction.
That $3k/$4k "luxury apartment" you're renting is slapped together in a rush just like everything else is.
Also, if you're on the 3rd floor or above, you have water bottles filled with urine stuffed inside your walls because the elevators are typically finished last.
#44
Weight loss industry. This might be obvious, but most of our business comes from return clients after they've gained their weight back (and then some). To be clear, the plan isn't rigged to make you gain it back, but the fact that it happens easily as a result of dieting keeps us in business.
Random Anon 3 years ago
People ask me how I am the same shape as I was 20 years ago but rarely believed me when I said just eat enough to not feel hungry. The thing is, when you eat until you feel "full", then you are already overdoing it. It's breaking from that mentality that is difficult.
#45
I know a lot of people get annoyed when a store employee pushes the credit card, but at the kids clothing store I worked at, if you didn’t get at least x amount per day they cut our hours. I wasn’t pushing you a sh**ty credit card to be an as**ole, I was scared to lose my hours.
James016 3 years ago
This happened to my wife once, she was asked if she wanted a store card, she asked if it was a credit card, they said no so she signed up as they gave the impression it was a card where you get points for spending in the shop. When it came it was a credit card. She rang the CS number and had a right go at them for lying to her.
#46
If you're someone who purchases bulk nuts, grains, etc. Just know that those bins are probably rarely cleaned, and even when they are "cleaned", odds are they were just rinsed out/wiped down to look clean.
I used to be a bulk buyer at Whole Foods Market and when I took over our bulk department had no cleaning logs or sanitizing procedure. The bins had moths/insect colonies and mold in them. Our store was opened nearly 5 years prior.
#47
Healthcare. Homemaker.
If your grandparent or parent gets in-home care, please know that your family member could live in a cockroach infested house and not have to move if they didn't want to. It's not up to the company to give your loved ones environmentally safe places to live, it's up to the family. They can certainly try to persuade, but they can't force.
Why do I know this? Because I've been to the cockroach infested house where an 80 year old woman lives. I have a mentally ill client that put bleach in his dog's water to help with it's breath. I have a client who never cleans his cat box. I have a client who has a caved in ceiling. I've called it in, but there is no help from the company. All they say is, "There's nothing we can do. It's up to the family members."
It's a sad sad thing because there are sooooo many family members and friends who really don't give a [damn] how some people are living. Sure, they'll visit. But do they clean the litter box? Do they make sure there are no cockroaches, do they make sure the house is stable and not falling apart? Nope. They say they care and that they love the person, but they don't care enough to make sure they live in a healthy environment.
It really worries me, because if I imagine my own mother having such a deteriorated mind and there were no other family members to help her, she could live in a run down, cockroach infested house if she was stubborn enough. It frustrates me, because whereas the client does have rights, should they really have the right to live somewhere where their health could be at risk? Where their caregivers could be at risk as well?
#48
Vodka is really, really, really cheap to make: the glass bottle costs more than the juice
#49
Everything at the Container Store exists and is cheaper at Lowe’s.
Paul K. Johnson 3 years ago
And you can find it cheaper on Amazon than at lowes. Plus lowes sells mostly low-quality consumer market stuff. If you want quality then you have to buy the highest quality stuff lowes (home depot, et al) carry or find a place that carries better stuff over all.
#50
Dress codes and other rules bouncers tell you at the door are usually made up on the fly.
What do you think ?
Tammie Braggs 3 years ago
I'm a teacher. If a student is bullying other students it's because they are being bullied or ignored at home...either by a sibling, or by one or both parents. Remember that. No matter how nice the family seems when they're sitting in front of you always remember that, and then find a way to bond with that student.
Jackie Walters 3 years ago
Disagree. I was bullied at school for a physical feature that runs in my family. We didn't bully each other at home.
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Sherryist 3 years ago
Here's a little known fact about having surgery: seen one you seen them all seriously. But here's the main one: yes, we will ask you 100x what surgery are you having done today. You want to know why? We want to make sure YOU know. We all know what you're having done but we are legally required to confirm it with you at every step along the way. Also, we keep asking you when you had something to eat or drink because we've given you a drug along the way that relaxes you. Eventually, you'll start telling the truth and then we will have to cancel your surgery if you ate within an 8-hr period...because you could die.
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
EXACTLY. People lie, and their families sue when something goes awry even if the patient lied and it's on videotape.
Load More Replies... YouDontLikeMe? 3 years ago
How about the little known fact that the "smoke" seen coming out of coal fired power plants is not smoke but STEAM. In fact it is cleaner water than that in most bottled water.
Annie Niemands 3 years ago
Why does this have this many upvotes. The "smoke" from the cooling towers of coal fired power plants is steam, of course, but you can't just ignore that every coal fired power plant has at least one chimney, and that is for the SMOKE. It sends enormous quantities of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, more so than any other fossil fuel. A coal power plant must burn coal to work, and those emissions are put into the air. The cooling tower is irrelevant in the matter of cleanliness of coal. It's like saying your AC in your car is in fact not exhaust but air. Like, why?
Load More Replies... Tammie Braggs 3 years ago
I'm a teacher. If a student is bullying other students it's because they are being bullied or ignored at home...either by a sibling, or by one or both parents. Remember that. No matter how nice the family seems when they're sitting in front of you always remember that, and then find a way to bond with that student.
Jackie Walters 3 years ago
Disagree. I was bullied at school for a physical feature that runs in my family. We didn't bully each other at home.
Load More Replies... Sherryist 3 years ago
Here's a little known fact about having surgery: seen one you seen them all seriously. But here's the main one: yes, we will ask you 100x what surgery are you having done today. You want to know why? We want to make sure YOU know. We all know what you're having done but we are legally required to confirm it with you at every step along the way. Also, we keep asking you when you had something to eat or drink because we've given you a drug along the way that relaxes you. Eventually, you'll start telling the truth and then we will have to cancel your surgery if you ate within an 8-hr period...because you could die.
Leo Domitrix 3 years ago
EXACTLY. People lie, and their families sue when something goes awry even if the patient lied and it's on videotape.
Load More Replies... YouDontLikeMe? 3 years ago
How about the little known fact that the "smoke" seen coming out of coal fired power plants is not smoke but STEAM. In fact it is cleaner water than that in most bottled water.
Annie Niemands 3 years ago
Why does this have this many upvotes. The "smoke" from the cooling towers of coal fired power plants is steam, of course, but you can't just ignore that every coal fired power plant has at least one chimney, and that is for the SMOKE. It sends enormous quantities of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, more so than any other fossil fuel. A coal power plant must burn coal to work, and those emissions are put into the air. The cooling tower is irrelevant in the matter of cleanliness of coal. It's like saying your AC in your car is in fact not exhaust but air. Like, why?
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