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30 People On Reddit Respond To The Viral “What Popular Saying Is Actually Nonsense” Thread

"Money can't buy happiness," "looks don't matter," "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger": chances are you've heard all of these popular sayings more than a dozen times. Or even said them yourself—but do you really believe them? It's easy to say that money can't buy happiness for someone for whom money isn't a problem. But for someone who struggles to make ends meet and keep a roof over their head, money sure does bring at least some happiness or relief.

This week, one Reddit user asked others to share which popular sayings they find to be complete rubbish. As always, hundreds of people participated in the discussion, mentioning some really common sayings and explaining why they're nonsense. Scroll down below to read the best 45 replies and vote for the ones you agree with!

More info: Reddit

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#1

"Money can't buy happiness."

Poverty can't buy anything.

TwistyMaKneepahls Report

Final score:

302points

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#2

"The Customer is Always Right." Because half of it's missing. The full truism is "The Customer is Always Right in matters of taste."

Guy wants a pint of half baileys, half orange juice? He's paying...

Lady wants to wear a raw turkey as a hat? You do you love...

What it doesn't mean is that Kyle and Karen get free reign to treat people like [crap] because they happen to be handing over money at some stage of the interaction.

Timmibal Report

Final score:

285points

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#3

"There's plenty of fish in the sea"

You know what else there's plenty of in the sea? Trash.

GIGABRO98 Report

Final score:

269points

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#4

‘If you can’t handle me at my worst you don’t deserve me at my best’

This is like toxic relationship starter pack stuff

swallowyoursadness Report

Final score:

261points

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#5

'What doesnt kill you just makes you stronger'..... bull. 2x cancer survivor here, it sure didnt make me any stronger...

Tekmantwo Report

Final score:

257points

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#6

"Looks don't matter."

They do. Not always, not completely, but they very much do matter. Humans are kind of superficial in that regard.

InAndOut51 Report

Final score:

250points

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#7

"It doesn't matter who started it."

Of course it does. Even legally the concept of who did what first is recognized as vital.

ActualTymell Report

Final score:

246points

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#8

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

Nah mate, it just gives you trauma.

Final score:

216points

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#9

“Good things come to those who wait.”

Try waiting your whole life and see what comes to you.

velour_manure Report

Final score:

214points

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#10

"it's just how I am." Well you're a [damn prick], change your behavior and act like a decent human!

Final score:

207points

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#11

"Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are college dropouts"

Dude they went to Harvard, not community college.!

Familiar_Internet Report

Final score:

203points

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#12

“Happiness is a choice.” That’s maybe sometimes a little true, but depression is real, and it’s not what anyone chose.

lmWritingThis Report

Final score:

203points

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#13

Everything happens for a reason. (Like rape, murder, death of children, starvation, genocide, etc). Or my favorite, God doesn’t give you more than you can handle.

managermomma Report

Final score:

201points

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#14

"Life is like a box of chocolate. You never know what you're gonna get." Every box of chocolate I have seen has a little book that tells you what you'll get.

The_Hulk_rage Report

Final score:

191points

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#15

When someone tells a depressed person "just exercise and drink water." [Hell], I barely have enough motivation to breathe, what makes you think I'm gonna get up to exercise.

WalkingOnPavement Report

Final score:

187points

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#16

"Practice makes perfect!"

I had a teacher that used to point out that no, practice makes permanent. If you practice something in an incorrect way, you're going to perform incorrectly.

JudahBotwin Report

Final score:

186points

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#17

“Sleep is for the weak” or “I’ll sleep when I die” Well actually, not sleeping is making you weaker and decreasing your lifespan as you gloat about it right now. Sleep is essential people.

byawaworht Report

Final score:

182points

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#18

You don't need money to be happy.

Usually this quote is being used by those who are already filthy rich

dothisnowww Report

Final score:

173points

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#19

"Einstein wasn't good in school" he was a very good student with good marks

LucaLiveLIGMA Report

Final score:

168points

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#20

"Violence is never the answer."

It isn't usually the answer. But occasionally...it really is.

fromfoxland Report

Final score:

150points

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#21

"A watched pot never boils."

It does, I've checked.

JellyRollGeorge Report

Final score:

149points

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#22

“If you tell me the truth you won’t get into trouble”

Keidis-mcdaddy Report

Final score:

138points

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#23

Using the phrase, "it's just a few bad apples," to protect an institution when the full proverb says, " a few bad apples spoils the bunch."

Final score:

138points

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#24

Be yourself. If you're a [prick] and even the nice people hate you, then you should change and not be yourself

naaatssann Report

Final score:

132points

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#25

Hard work never killed anyone

oreomagic Report

Final score:

129points

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#26

This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.

LIES!!

FierceMilkshake Report

Final score:

121points

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#27

“Sleep like a baby”. It implies that babies sleep really well. My second is 4 days old; I can confirm babies don’t sleep well.

rwshields Report

Final score:

121points

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#28

You can achieve anything you set your mind to.

ryumaruborike Report

Final score:

95points

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#29

"It's better to ask forgiveness than permission." Yeah eventually people are just gonna stop forgiving you.

paolocase Report

Final score:

94points

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#30

If you love something set it free...

Uh no if you love something smother it with affection until you catch the early flight home and catch a couple naked dudes tag teaming your fiancé

I_dont_like_cheese Report

Final score:

67points

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#31

'What goes around, comes around.'

I've seen so many good, honest people get screwed over by toxic, immoral people who never get their comeuppance. The concept of karma is [bullcrap].

Final score:

35points

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#32

Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me

Final score:

33points

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#33

"The early bird gets the worm" - um....no? Sleep cycles differ. There's quite a lot of research about that. Morning persons are not automatically more productive

NerdySociopath Report

Final score:

28points

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#34

I before e except after c.

WalkingOnPavement Report

Final score:

26points

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#35

Whatever happens, happens for a reason

toreadornotto Report

Final score:

26points

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#36

Time heals all wounds.

Malarkey.

augenwiehimmel Report

Final score:

25points

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#37

Blood is thicker than water. Wanna know what else is thicker than water? [Bullcrap].

JasnahKolin Report

Final score:

24points

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#38

"Do what makes you happy" in regards to searching for a career.

Because I have come to find that people tend to not be passionate about their jobs. Sure, there are some who enjoy it but it isn't something they're passionate about. I personally believe that any hobby you turn into a necessity kills your love for said hobby, of course it's not true for everyone but it's true for me and apparently a lot of people who have commented about their experiences. In the end, you'll either land a job you are passionate about in which you'll be the lucky few or you'll land a job you won't be passionate about and feel like you failed because you aren't passionate about your job. I would prefer the saying "do what you find tolerable and use the money to pursue what you actually love". Also some passions cannot be turned into careers and some people just don't have passions, my passion for running isn't something I can make a reliable income with. That's something else I recognized as I remember lots of people in my HS did not know what to pursue after HS because they did not have any passions in any fields or in general.

TheSupremeGrape Report

Final score:

23points

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#39

'Never judge a book by its cover' as someone who works in a bookshop - you're damn right I'm gonna judge the quality of a book by its production. As do most customers. I have gotten insights into the world of publishing and the decisions they make based on the quality and success of the product they are pushing.

For instance - an author just starting out? The catchy title of the book is going to be the biggest text on the book. The author has brought out 3-4 books that are proving succesful? The text size of their name is going to be equal to the title. Ian Rankin or Kate Atkinson? Their name is going to be the biggest text on that cover because that's what draws customers in. I remember chatting to James Oswald who said 'I knew I had made it when my name got bigger'

Our Scottish buyer is very good at sniffing out underdog books. Books that are incredibly well-written, but haven't got the recognition they deserve, and she will discuss with the publisher about changing the cover of the book to reflect this. Suddenly huge boosts in sales.

When a customer is looking for an obscure title, and I look it up, I can almost immediately tell if its a low quality independent publication by the way the cover looks.

Disclaimer - much like with the underdogs, there are ALWAYS exceptions to rules. And it is definitely not always the case that a low quality looking book is necessarily a bad read. It's just often an indication of a first time or unpublished author, who hasn't had a chance to hone their craft yet.

MsBobbyJenkins Report

Final score:

21points

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#40

An apple a day keeps the doctor away

josephgulag Report

Final score:

20points

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#41

What you don’t know can’t hurt you , while yes it’s technically true it’s also not a positive thing , theoretically if someone’s partner was cheating on them yes they don’t know so they can’t be hurt but it’s still a bad thing

DaRkxDaSHeR Report

Final score:

18points

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#42

Opposites attract.

They don’t. Birds of a feather flock together, on the other hand, is usually true for relationships.

Final score:

17points

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#43

Everything is fair in love, war and game.

Final score:

16points

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#44

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result”

It’s not.

iaintmadaboutit Report

Final score:

12points

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#45

“Don’t worry about it.”

Coworkers say this when other coworkers start stonewalling you, death staring you, and becoming visibly uncomfortable in your presence.

Final score:

11points

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Neringa Utaraitė

Neringa is a proud writer at Bored Panda who used to study English and French linguistics. Although she has many different interests, she's particularly drawn to covering stories about pop culture as well as history. While not at the office, this Panda enjoys creepy movies, poetry, photography and learning how to play the piano.

Neringa is a proud writer at Bored Panda who used to study English and French linguistics. Although she has many different interests, she's particularly drawn to covering stories about pop culture as well as history. While not at the office, this Panda enjoys creepy movies, poetry, photography and learning how to play the piano.

What do you think ?

Who? Me? 3 years ago

I don't know if it is only me but motivational talks demotivate me tremendously.

35points

Bender Bending Rodríguez 3 years ago (edited)

You aren't alone. I can't listen to that all warm fuzzy bull s**t.

20points

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Nerdlife 3 years ago

Nah mate... you're not alone! I always avoid "motivational videos" and such things

5points

Grady'sRaider 3 years ago

Was on project, $25k/hr in consultants and management. They had a team building consultant come in for 4 hours doing touchy feeley exercises. People grouped up with their usual besties to compete. $100k later, net sum zero, we went back to work half a day further behind.

0points

Soap 3 years ago

*sigh* to much motivational stuff for me. Ima go lay down

16points

Coat Guy 3 years ago

lma - laughing my ass..?

2points

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Christian Bradshaw 3 years ago

I can't tell if I'm motivated or feeling depressed right now

12points

Nerdlife 3 years ago

Its both I think 😩 because same...

0points

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Who? Me? 3 years ago

I don't know if it is only me but motivational talks demotivate me tremendously.

35points

Bender Bending Rodríguez 3 years ago (edited)

You aren't alone. I can't listen to that all warm fuzzy bull s**t.

20points

Load More Replies...

Nerdlife 3 years ago

Nah mate... you're not alone! I always avoid "motivational videos" and such things

5points

Grady'sRaider 3 years ago

Was on project, $25k/hr in consultants and management. They had a team building consultant come in for 4 hours doing touchy feeley exercises. People grouped up with their usual besties to compete. $100k later, net sum zero, we went back to work half a day further behind.

0points

Soap 3 years ago

*sigh* to much motivational stuff for me. Ima go lay down

16points

Coat Guy 3 years ago

lma - laughing my ass..?

2points

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Christian Bradshaw 3 years ago

I can't tell if I'm motivated or feeling depressed right now

12points

Nerdlife 3 years ago

Its both I think 😩 because same...

0points

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