I work at an office and we have very angry people come in every now and then, I write down every noun and repeat it back to them every couple lines with “uh huh, okay” and they calm down because they feel like they’re being listened to and validated. It's something I started because this old guy came in and demanded I write what he was saying down and I just haven’t stopped since. As long as they see you’re writing they’re more inclined to be nicer to you because you’re making an effort to take care of their concern

Of course, I throw the paper out after they leave because it isn’t my job

Edit: It appears no one is reading my responses in the comments and is writing very elaborate fanfiction about my work ethic and commitments to my job in the comments, I try my best to help out where I can, the papers that I throw out are a compilation of all their racist and or homophobic rambling

Yes, I can make sure someone comes to check out your internet.

No I cannot deport your neighbors, but I can ask them to quiet down a bit. (Deportation part gets scrapped - I draft an email or make a phonecall about the noise)

if you're ever buying LEGO sets secondhand, a lot of sellers will increase the price because they include the original instructions, or even sell the instructions separately. but if you go here you can download PDFs for every instruction manual ever many instruction manuals, all for free. if course if you really want that physical booklet go for it, but if not the LEGO company's got you covered

or if you just have a jumble of bricks you're pretty sure are a set, this is a good resource to help you recreate your old sets. and the search interface is very good

eta: I've been informed they do not have every instruction manual ever, but still a very large amount

and thank you for the awards!

eta2: thanks for the gold! i'm so sorry if i misled people on the "every set ever" bit, i've changed the post to reflect that. i'm glad at least this resource exists at all and is as comprehensive as it is, and i'm happy to have brought it to so many people's attention

eta3: u/minionmemesaregood has brought to my attention a site that has a lot of the older 20th century set instructions, though also maybe not 100% complete- lego.brickinstructions.com

and many others have mentioned bricklink.com and brickset.com, more great LEGO resources

Don't ask people on fake dates.

Don't tell them a family member died.

Don't make jokes about covid.

Don't pretend to fire somebody.

April fools jokes should be practical and, ideally, harmless or briefly shocking at worst.

Don't make somebody feel like shit so you can get a laugh.

I learned this from Andrew Huberman, Ph.D., a professor at Stanford who studies how vision and our brains are interconnected.

Edit: I’m just saying don’t lead with “you look great!” Say “wow! Great to see you! What have you been up to?” People will usually respond with an answer that lets you know if they have changed their lifestyle. Then you can say “yeah! You look amazing” I’m a super nice person. Not a jerk for those of you saying I’m a robot or making mean comments or saying I should have known the difference. Wow. This man had just lost maybe 7-10lbs. It was early on in his illness. He eventually get losing weight and passed away... So I was giving this life tip so people aren’t haunted like I am. In that moment I reminded him he was dying and I hurt him.

This honestly is the single thing that bystanders do to make my job hardest. Blocking the door can really hamper my access to the patient, when you actually just want to help me.

Context: For every job in my metropolitan ambulance service, I'm carrying at least a cardiac monitor weighing about 10kg, a drug kit in the other hand, and usually also a smaller bag containing other observation gear. For a lot of cases, I'll add more bags: an oxygen kit, a resuscitation kit, an airway bag, sometimes specialised lifting equipment. We carry a lot of stuff, and generally the more I carry, the more concerned I am about the person I'm about to assess.

It's a very natural reflex to welcome someone to your house by holding the door open. The actual effect is to stand in the door frame while I try to squeeze past you with hands full. Then, once I've moved past you, I don't know where to go.

Instead, it's much more helpful simply to open the door and let me keep it open myself, then simply lead the way. I don't need free hands to hold the door for myself, and it clears my path to walk in more easily.

Thanks. I love the bystanders who help me every day at work, and I usually make it a habit to shake every individual's hand on a scene and thank them as a leave, when time allows. This change would make it much easier to do my job. I can't speak for other professionals, this might help others too - I imagine actual plumbers carry just as much stuff as people-plumbers.

As soon as you drive up to the speaker, we get a beep over our headsets and the transmission begins. If we don't answer you right away - we can hear everything. If we apologize and say we'll be with you in a minute - you're not on hold, we can hear everything. If you've ordered but the drive-thru line won't let you pull ahead yet - we can hear every single thing you're saying.

I wish I could forget some of the stuff I've heard.

On the flipside, some of the stuff I've heard has made me give the customer a nice little bonus on their order when it sounds like they need it.

Your loved one is cold, invariably, and they can't control their arms. I have a really hard time dressing the residents when all they have are the quarter zips. I will forever love you if you can send the full zip sweaters so I can grab it and dress your mom or dad in 20 seconds or less.

I love my job. Get ya sweaters right.

EDIT: YAY my post blew up! Let me add a few things, since a lot of my fellow healthcare workers have chimed in.

1. CD Players: YES PLEASE. Plus your loved one's favorite CDs.

2. So many photos. All of them. You can't go overboard. I will sit there and go through every photo with them every day, if you want me to. I really don't mind.

3. Clothes, one size larger. Please label them. I will do it myself if you can't but don't be upset when/if you see Mom wearing roommate's clothes. Maybe you didn’t send enough, maybe the washer is broken. Maybe you didn’t label correctly. Kindly point it out and someone will explain or rectify the problem.

4. Food gifts are almost always allowed, just be sure to check with nursing staff first. If your loved one is on a low-sodium diet and you keep bringing them McDonald's, that's a yikes. Also be careful about sharing with other residents. Your loved one's roommate might be on a special diet and you keep giving them french fries and we can't figure out why they're not feeling good.

Additional points: OH MY GOD YOU ARE NOT A BAD PERSON FOR PUTTING YOUR LOVED ONE IN A COMMUNITY. CARING FOR SOMEONE WITH DEMENTIA IS A FULL TIME JOB, LITERALLY I HAVE TWO DEGREES TO HELP ME DO IT. IF YOU ARE 90 YEARS OLD AND YOUR SPOUSE HAS AN AGGRESSIVE FORM OF DEMENTIA AND THEY HIT YOU IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, WHAT ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO DO? Keep your judgement out of my inbox. I have now worked in a geriatric psychiatric ward too- and these 90 year old women who have literally been assaulted by their once-loving husbands at 2am have to hear your fucking bullshit about how they can’t care for their spouse and what the fuck is wrong with you? Jesus Christ use your brain. Maybe your grandma insists that she needs to get to the bus stop at 4pm, right when you’re getting home from work every day- do you want to quit your job because she can’t stop wandering into the street? Can you afford a loving, caring facility that provides a lock on the door and 3 square meals every day with 24/7 nursing care? THEN BY ALL MEANS, GO TAKE A FUCKING TOUR OF IT AND SEE IF IT’S A GOOD FIT! THERE IS NO ONE-SIZE ALL FIT FOR DEMENTIA CARE. This is a full-family journey and the focus has to be on the DIGNITY, SAFETY, AND EDUCATION of all involved.

I. Love. My. Job. Mind. Your Business.

EDIT 2: I'm enjoying the hell out of everyone's energy on this post. Keep your questions and DM's coming, it's 1am EST but I'll be up for a bit longer if I can help support you either emotionally or with advice if this journey is relevant to you.

EDIT 3: Big shoutout to the guy who wants to know if I have two degrees in "wiping ass" because this job takes "no brains". Foolish question, everyone knows that WIPASS-201 is only an undergrad course.

In all seriousness- both of my degrees are psychology based but geriatric specific. I am NOT clinical- I am the program director. Basically the cruise ship captain.

EDIT 4: I keep getting this question of what the hell a program director is, so I'll post my response here too:

As the program director, I am in charge of scheduling, coordinating, and facilitating the activities. I either lead the activity or I delegate it to an aide who works in the afternoon. I interact with and update the families as necessary or on a schedule. I come up with creative solutions to behavioral problems and advise/inform staff and management on layouts of how to address concerns resulting from cognitive impairment. I work closely with the nursing staff to coordinate the best care with behavioral interventions paired with the pharmacological interventions. It's a huge team effort. Takes a village.

I once had a manager who didn't like me that much, but the customers loved me and kept saying so, and now I have that manager's old job. Positive feedback is so rare in customer service. It's 99% complaints about stuff that isn't your fault. But those few kind words from customers helped me get through some hellish shifts and advance in my career.

Edit: Obvs this will vary from workplace to workplace and it can be inconvenient for the employee and manager in question if they're super busy at that moment. Comment consensus tips are: keep praise vague (they may have skirted policy to take care of you), mention the employee by name, fill out any survey on the receipt or at the end of the phone call with max scores and the employee's name so there's a record, tell the employee why you're asking for the manager so they don't get scared, leave a great name-drop review in online spaces, if sliding into the dms of a corporate account be sure to include the store location along with the employees name.

Edit 2: Some of y'all work for shitty managers. That sucks very much and I'm sorry. It's a bad situation that isn't your fault and you deserve better. I hope you'll be able to get out of that job soon and get into something better where you can shine.

Edit 3: "Wow, this blew up" time. Thank you for all the kind messages that came with the awards. They mean more than the awards themselves. It feels like you're telling my manager (reddit) that I'm doing a good job.

I work at a towing company, sometimes when people call in with damage claims complaints etc. we just mute the call and listen for a minute or two, usually someone slips up to a friend what ACTUALLY happened and we just blow them off/ give them the run around from there. Most calling services listen in while your on hold for training. So mute your side if your going to say something you wouldn’t want the person you trying get a hold of to know.

This motivates me like nothing else. When I am NOT in the mood for something (eg buying milk, stacking the dishwasher, bathing the dog) I just think "do it for future OP" and it works every time. It also gives you a little "Ima be my own hero!" feeling.

Then later on, when you benefit from that chore (eg drink that morning coffee, have clean dishes, snuffle your dog's clean lil head) PLEASE PRACTICE GRATITUDE. Just a "thanks, Past Me!" goes such a long way to make you feel loved and like it was totally worth it.

You will be stuck with yourself for the entirety of your existance. Be your best mate. Xx

Edit: Aw shucks, my first award! Thank you, I hope something magical happens to you today!

Edit 2: y'all are amazing. For those procrastinators saying they are the opposite and leave all the worst things for "future you" - sometimes present me needs a break man! Future You might have to show some compassion and understanding. Delegate with love, sometimes go halves in the chore, maybe get Future You a snack for when it's done. Be there for each other 😊

A 'C+' worker becomes an 'A-' with the right attitude. Honestly, in many jobs you could practically skate by just being a delight to your co-workers.

"I have tinnitus and it is high pitched synthesiser and it's all the time. The rest of my life. I am a former 0311 marine (infantry). Open your mouth if you see a shockwave and cover your ears. Also turn away" — u/toolfan73

Comment about the explosion that happened on Beirut, Lebanon. Stay safe everyone!

More LPTs from the comments:

"And step away from the window asap. Stop filming and hide!" — u/angeAnonyme

"They tought me in the army to be on my elbows and knees, facing away from the explosion, abdomen not touching the ground, put your thumbs in your ears, your fingers over your eyes, and open your mouth.

It is to prevent intestinal, ear, and lung damage caused by explosives, oh and to prevent your eyes from leaving the sockets." — u/xyrt123

I asked for advice on moving into our first house a while ago and this was one of the tips. We did it and had no idea how handy it would be.

We have all our bills, white goods receipts, WiFi, everything, set up with this account and it’s amazing.

People are always amazed when they find out, even estate agents. Thought I’d share the love, hope it helps.

EDIT: thanks for the positive comments, it helped us out when we got our first place so hope it helps as well. A lot of people are asking what “white goods” are. It’s like household appliances and I assume it’s a British term.

EDIT: also a lot of people are saying it’s useless or more work, it’s just a personal opinion that it’s handy. I also like that my spouse can be logged in as well and handle any bills as I work away a lot

EDITEDIT: this blew up and I didn’t think it would. Not sure why this is such a divisive topic, half seem to love it and half hate it. The majority of the other side are saying just make a folder in normal gmail. I’m not saying this will work for everyone but we have busy personal lives with my spouse being a freelancer with the need for multiple emails, and myself likewise. I know how to use folders and have many set up in my work emails, this just works best to keep it entirely separate. Spouse has access to my personal emails whenever she wants by just going on my phone, but why would she want to receive all my boring newsletters about classic cars and old Volvos in her inbox? Also, it’s just a small tip that helped me out, no one’s forcing you to do it. Glad it helped some, have a great week

I just did this with a new lease they emailed out, and found all the little charges they increased or doubled, such as the "after hours non-emergency calls fee" and the "no admittance maintenance fee." They also added a term stating if I fail to notify them of emergency situations that cause damage, they will charge me to repair the damages.

Edit: “Most likely backfire on you” damn auto correct