21 Industry Secrets That They Don't Tell You
Recently, Reddit user u/Fuck_the_Market asked, "What's a little secret that you know only because you work in that industry?" Here are some of the top-voted responses:
1."The person you strapped yourself to for a tandem skydive was up until 3 a.m. doing cocaine last night."
2."Sometimes when a job is posted and the requirements are unrealistic, that’s because they already have someone that needs to be promoted to that specific position, and they simply tailor that job ad so only that person qualifies even if hundreds of people apply."
3."Carpenter here! After eight years of framing houses, three as a foreman, and now three years of trim carpentry, I've realized that the vast majority of houses aren’t built to code or are just slapped together with the cheapest products. Most inspectors aren’t willing to crawl around in the roofs, and won’t look in the subfloor, and plenty of contractors know this. They will take shortcuts, splice things together or will block off and hide shitty work. If you have an island in your kitchen that has been framed, there is a phenomenal chance that you have some pizza crusts, Modelo bottles, or a piss bottle hidden inside. Drywallers seem to hate walking their trash to the dumpster. 100-year-old houses are a thing of the past."
4."The best time to buy a car is the second model year of its release. Year 1, it's patchwork to just get them off the line. Year 2, everything is fixed and has quality content. Year 3+, original equipment manufacturers give incentives to make parts cheaper to improve margins."
5."Today's soup of the day was yesterday's soup of the day, now with rice!"
6."In utility construction (primarily fiber), the majority of the subcontractors have no idea what they’re actually doing and are just following the instructions like it’s IKEA furniture."
7."Video game development is a chaotic mess. It's a miracle that any game comes out at all, let alone with any amount of polish. Audiences like to blame QA for bugs, but that's extremely misguided. I guarantee that QA knows about every bug in detail (including tons most players have never even encountered). The real folks to blame are management who choose not to put resources towards fixing these bugs."
8."I don't work for Wendys, but they actually have higher standards for their food than anyone else we distribute to. Their beef is actually never frozen, and they'll send them back if they get packed with frozen items. They turn away shipments for things like meat (in boxes) touching produce (in boxes), as they should, but no one else does. They send back expired or off-batch produce (ex: their tomatoes are usually picked a couple of days before the store actually receives them), which they should, but no one else does. I still don't eat fast food, but I like to see food quality taken seriously."
9."Things that you buy that come in 'eco-friendly' packaging are first removed from their regular plastic packaging and then put back into the new packaging. It’s actually a double waste. The places they get their inventory from overseas are not using eco-friendly packaging. Go to a container shipyard, everything is shipped to minimize cost."
10."I work in visual effects for TV and film. Most people assume that it's just big explosions and such, which it is, but a lot of it is actually cosmetic fixes and de-aging for the stars."
11."The massive, professional-quality cinema projectors that movie theaters use, the ones that can project crystal-clear 4K+ images, the ones linked to top-notch surround systems that make movies come to life, the ones so big they have a giant exhaust hose: they have regular HDMI ports on the side. The staff has totally ripped each other apart in Mortal Kombat, explored a fantasy world in Breath of the Wild, or blown away enemies in Call of Duty on the big screen when everyone has left for the night."
12."Bartenders find a discreet spot to google the recipe for that rare drink you just ordered."
13."Your professors hate grading your papers almost — if not more — than you hate writing them."
14."Teachers do in fact have favorite students."
15."Anyone giving stock advice is basically reading a horoscope. If they had the ability to pick superior investments, they'd do it themselves and not talk about it."
16."TV commercials really ARE louder than the programs."
17."My uncle worked as an accountant for the construction of a few MGM casinos and resorts. Don't use the slot machines — they are under a carefully constructed algorithm to keep you hooked, but ensure the house gets all the profit."
18."As a teacher, I can say the reading level of most teenagers is far, far worse than most of the country (US) realizes."
19."As my old head chef Frank used to say, 'The only difference between a $15 plate and a $30 plate is a half stick of butter.' He was right."
20."Maybe an open secret by now, but all those real estate reality shows where couples are looking for houses…they’re already in contract with the one they want before they start filming. The production crew works with a local realtor to find two jabroni houses to take the fall. That realtor will be in the show credits."
21."IT will absolutely slow walk tickets if you're an asshole."
22."Healthcare equipment costs are massively inflated in the U.S. For example, the batteries that go into the little blood pressure electric carts will cost hundreds to replace. But they are virtually identical to the game feeder batteries you can buy at sporting goods shops for maybe $20. And those costs are lower in other countries. The manufacturers know they can inflate costs in the US far more than anywhere else. It is cheaper to buy a replacement x-ray tube overseas, import it legally, and pay all the associated fees and shipping costs than to buy one here in the US. Same tube, same specifications."
23.And finally, "Your call isn’t really important to us."
Do you have any insider secrets about the industry you work in? Let us know in the comments!
Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
