20 Life-Hacks That Can Help You at Work

1.

"Document everything. Especially if your boss asks you to do something that you don't think is right but he won't listen, obtain written/emailed instructions. If it's verbal, it's not good enough."

2.

"I watch lazy people to find the easiest most efficient way to do things. I listen to negative people before starting a project to find out all the ways it could go badly. Stupid people teach me what not to do."

3.

"Do more than what's expected of you, and it will come to be expected of you."

4.

"Just doing things actually gets a lot of stuff done! If I just hold this presentation, give that lecture, contribute to the work environment, everything else just gets so much easier to deal with. Actually applying myself now and then leads to progress personally as well as professionally."

5.

"The more absurd and complicated a problem seems to be, the more likely it is that a simple restart will fix it. I'm a programmer and I've lost count of how many times I've spent 30-45 minutes pulling my hair out trying to get a handle on a problem when simply restarting my computer fixed it."

6.

"Carry papers with you everywhere you go and nobody will realize your laziness."

7.

"That most people aren't really that smart despite education and job titles. They are just really smart about one thing. I learned this a long time ago but when I was young, I generally believed if somebody had a fancy degree they were smart in general. This is definitely not the case. On the flip side I also realized that there is no simple or easy jobs, no matter what they may look like."

8.

"To learn when to stop talking and walk away from an argument with an ignorant person."

9.

"Don't deliver on tasks too quickly if you're not busy. Next time they will expect it in the same amount of time and expect the same turnaround. Manage expectations, sometimes even get the work done but don't let them know right away - email scheduling is your friend."

10.

"Make your resume as machine-readable as possible. Boring, generic templates with well-defined fields, little-to-no formatting beyond some bolding and bullet points, and a text-only document free of images or design elements are your best friend."

11.

"If someone gossips about others, they also gossip about you. Never tell a co-worker something you aren't willing to tell everyone else at work."

12.

"Admit to the little mistakes to gain a reputation of being honest. Then when you make a huge mistake, lie."

13.

"Most executives have zero clue about the technical aspects of their company (production, R&D, quality control etc). If you learn to BS them in a professional manner you can tell them that a 2 weeks project needs a whole month and just take your sweet time finishing it. Heck, you can deliver it a week earlier every once in a while or pretend some problem arose and that you magically found how to fix it and they will just go along with it. I got 3 raises in 2 years and now I'm about to get a promotion which nearly doubles my pay."

14.

"Google is better than our knowledge base."

15.

"When you look annoyed all the time, people think that you're busy."

16.

"Cook bacon in the oven. 350F, 25-35 min depending on how chewy or crispy you want it. Use a broiler pan to drain off the grease as it cooks. Leftover bacon (yeah right), can be refrigerated 30 sec in the microwave, and be just as good as out of the oven. You will never cook bacon differently and start to judge restaurant bacon. Sprinkle brown sugar or cayenne pepper over it too."

17.

"If an online application form goes to a "mock interview" stage where you're given a question in the form of a video and you have say, 90 seconds to come up with an answer and 2 minutes to say it, don't have your browser remember your webcam settings between questions; the timer doesn't start counting down until you confirm you want the browser to use your webcam so that you have as long as you want to come up with the answer."

18.

"Triple bag your hands when you want to keep your hands warm and dry while working outside. A light glove with a latex glove over it and finish it with your working gloves. Works wonders."

19.

"Little kids really care about their place in line. You can use this knowledge to your advantage."

20.

"The only thing I learned from my job is that "fragile" stickers do nothing."