'Booking directly through their website [instead of VRBO] saved us $1500': 24 Life tips that are so smart, they feel illegal

Author image for Jesse Kessenheimer
Jesse Kessenheimer • Writer and Editor
Mar 3, 2024 1:00 PM EST

Who was always the person who gave you the best advice? Was it your grizzled high school sports coach? Was it your wild college best friend? Or was it someone more traditional like your cargo-short-clad, dear ol' dad? Nowadays, it's hard to gauge the kinds of folks we can trust. With everything moving online, our human receptors to assess reliability have been blocked, making us wonder who has our back. For people who have ever been sucked into a pyramid scheme or have gotten added to an unwanted email list, you probably know exactly what I'm talking about. 

However, the Internet isn't all bad. In fact, some anonymous white knights out are happy to share their infinite wisdom with us. Unlike your high school acquaintance who's attempting to sell 10 bottles of supplements from their latest vitamin cleanse, these sage gurus have nothing to gain by sharing pro tips that have advised them and served them well throughout the years. These genius hacks are not only reliable, but they can potentially change the way we go about life by saving us time, money, and a little sanity. 

Scroll onward to power up your brain mojo with this week's best life pro tips!

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  • 01
    LPT: Use a nail clipper instead scissors to cut a thread LPT: Check air fares on Google flight and then book directly with the airlin for a lower fare. If you're trying to cut a thread Best Life Pro Tips of the Week LPT glasses fit better bag in your freezer. If the power is out for long ng LPT: Use hairdryer to m enough that your ice cube melts and refreezes in a different shape, some of your food may
    via canva
  • 02
    Posted by u/26 Kermy 4 days ago Social LPT: Adults makes friends the same way kids do. Instead of being forced into a class of your peers for hours a day you have to voluntarily seek out a hobby/club that meets regularly. This is because all relationships are a function of proximity, time, and shared experiences.
    via 26Kermy
  • 03
    I see tons of posts on my local sub from young adults who are stressed about finding friends and creating a real support network post-college. While that's likely a symptom of greater societal issues like mental health, car-dependence, the pandemic, changing cultural norms etc. It's important to remember that all human relationships need a few crucial elements to form and it won't just happen naturally as an adult without consistent and planned effort.
    via 26Kermy
  • 04
    Posted by u/ntrrrmilf 2 days ago Social LPT: The best way to get a teenager/preteen to tell you about their day is to ask if anyone got in trouble. As a lifelong reader of advice columns, former teacher of adolescents, and parent of a 12yo, this is the most failproof conversation starter I know. Parents get so frustrated because they want to know what the lives of their children are like, but "How was school/your day?" gets you nowhere. This question gets you some tea and also you'll know what's
    via ntrrrmilf
  • 05
    Posted by u/oogidyboogidybooo 2 days ago Miscellaneous LPT: If you have problems with people stealing your food at work, double bag your lunch box, and double knot each of the bags People used to steal my milk regularly and it got the point that some idiot finished my whole supply before I even had a chance to use it myself. So I started wrapping my milk in two plastic bags, and double knotted each of the plastic bags. The theft stopped immediately thereafter.
    via oogidyboogidybooo
  • 06
    Posted by u/theemeraldwarrior 3 days ago Traveling LPT: Many countries will not let you enter if your passport expires in six months or less LPT: Many countries have a "Six-Month Rule" where if your passport expires in less than six months from your anticipated departure date, they will deny your entry. Double check the specific rules for any country you plan on visiting. Some have "3-Month Rules" and some exempt certain countries from the rule entirely.
    via theemeraldwarrior
  • 07
    Posted by u/VaultofGrass 2 days ago Computers LPT: If you're using a search engine, set the date range to 2022 or earlier to avoid AI-written articles. I'm sure it's been mentioned before but I recently heard this advice and it's been very helpful. ChatGPT launched late 2022, so most articles from 2022 or earlier are pretty much guaranteed to have been written by a human.
    via VaultofGrass
  • 08
    Posted by u/MrMojoFomo 2 days ago LPT: When booking a place on VRBO/Air BnB, taking the time to find if the place is listed through a private agency can save money Traveling A My family likes to rent a beach house every summer. This year we're traveling to the outer banks with a group of 12, and my sister found a couple great places on VRBO. Once we found what we liked, she looked to see if the homes were listed through a local NC agency and both of them were. We booked through their website and
    via MrMojoFomo
  • 09
    Posted by u/akironman 4 days ago Electronics LPT - Make a habit of reducing the phone audio volume to zero before browsing any app/website that has audio. Might just save you from potentially embarrassing situations.
    via akironman
  • 10
    Posted by u/umbzapt 7 days ago Miscellaneous LPT: Stare at things that you often end up not remembering if you've done them or not (like locking your front door) for a good 3-5 seconds. When I'm locking my front door, I always stare at the key turned in the lock for a few seconds so I don't get miles down the road in my car wondering if I locked it. Same with putting detergent in the washing machine (I often can't remember if I did). Same when setting an alarm for the morning.
    via umbzapt
  • 11
    Posted by u/gluuey 17 hours ago Food & Drink LPT: Keep one ice cube in a ziplock bag in your freezer. If the power is out for long enough that your ice cube melts and refreezes in a different shape, some of your food may have gone bad.
    via gluuey
  • 12
    Posted by u/MoldavskyEDU 21 hours ago Electronics LPT: Got a weird text from an unknown number? search the number on Venmo/Cashapp and get their name for free. If you get someone harassing you over text or calls. (has happened to me after a breakup) searching the phone number on cashapp/zelle/Venmo or most payment transfer apps you will be able to get their name or some more info for free.
    via MoldavskyEDU
  • 13
    Posted by u/geekender 2 days ago Miscellaneous LPT: There may be a reason that item you are buying at the outlet is cheaper. A large number of manufacturers sell items specifically made for outlets. The term outlet here is a catch-all encompassing outlet mall stores, some big box stores, and online stores. The point being, you can't just necessarily compare a picture of two items.
    via geekender
  • 14
    This system is specifically set up to make you feel like you are the one who outsmarted the manufacturer and found a cheaper way to get their product. From their perspective, they made a sale to someone who otherwise was price sensitive and would never buy the premium version anyway. Items for outlets may be of slightly lower quality compared to what you'd find in regular stores.
    via geekender
  • 15
    Posted by u/TheFrebbin 7 days ago Miscellaneous LPT: if you have a lot of old bath and hand towels, you can donate them to a veterinary clinic. They're always desperate for towels.
    via TheFrebbin
  • 16
    Posted by u/notRANT 3 days ago LPT: When you're drafting an email, mention the recipients only after you have finalized your draft and it's ready to send. Computers I accidentally sent an unfinished email to someone just now because I was pressing the tab key but it ended up moving the active box thingy to the send button instead of putting tabs in the editor. This could've been easily avoided if I hadn't mentioned the recipient while I was still composing the mail.
    via notRANT
  • 17
    Posted by u/Adam_Gill_1965 4 days ago Finance LPT: If you find an old savings jar, don't cash the coins in immediately - check for rareities first Coins that haven't been in circulation for many years may be legal tender - but it's also entirely possible there are some which either are rare - or which have become rare and have remained undiscovered. Always check before you cash them in.
    via Adam_Gill_1965
  • 18
    Posted by u/room_602 6 days ago Clothing LPT: Use hairdryer to make your glasses fit better If you have glasses or sunglasses that are too loose or too tight (and cause headaches like mine did), instead of just bending them and risk breaking them, point a hairdryer at the bridge area and gently warm them up. This will allow you to more easily tighten/loosen them to fit you better.
    via room_602
  • 19
    Posted by u/wifey_material7 5 days ago Home & Garden LPT: Dish soap, wash rags, scrubbers, and disinfectant covers 95% of household cleaning supplies No need to waste time or energy on excessive cleaning supplies.
    via wifey_material7
  • 20
    Posted by u/AdWorried5627 5 days ago LPT: Write encouraging letters to yourself then keep for the future to read when times are difficult Miscellaneous Make yourself seem like a separate person and entity, this person whom writes to you encouraging letters hoping for the best and the love that they express to you. Write these letters to make it feel like someone in the world cares, it's you, having self-love does extraordinary things.
    via AdWorried5627
  • 21
    Posted by u/cwsvr 3 days ago Productivity LPT:If you want to learn a new language,read a Wikipedia article in target language about something you know very well. It is important that you have very good knowledge and possess very good vocabulary of the topic you will read about.
    via cwsvr
  • 22
    Posted by u/Necessary_Respond406 7 days ago LPT: Check air fares on Google flights and then book directly with the airline for a lower fare. Traveling I was lookin at air fares on Google flights and was booking a fare via their link to the airline. I took some time to put in the payment information so the browser timed out. Per chance I went directly to the airline website that I was booking on via Google flights and found that the total airfare was lower. Not by much but lower. Try it out!
    via Necessary_Respond406
  • 23
    Posted by u/4dotdotdotdot 2 days ago LPT: Use a nail clipper instead of scissors to cut a thread Clothing D If you're trying to cut a thread on a piece of clothing you're wearing or a similar situation where it's hard to put tension on the thread, use a nail clipper instead of scissors. Scissors require you to tightly pull the thread on both ends, but a nail clipper will cut straight down even if the thread isn't pulled tightly.
    via 4dotdotdotdot
  • 24
    Posted by u/HeyBojo 2 days ago LPT: Cutting board moving around? Putting a damp towel underweath will keep it in place. Food & Drink Candidly not sure how widely this is known BUT with how ridiculously annoying and dangerous a moving cutting board is I thought it'd be worth tossing out there. Good quality paper towels should do the trick as well?
    via HeyBojo
  • 25
    Posted by u/Worried-Standard6620 7 days ago LPT: Don't say " sorry I don't speak [language]" too perfectly Traveling I noticed that saying/pronouncing this sentence too well often leads to people continuing to speak to me in that language, probably thinking I'm just being humble, even when it's really the only single phrase I know.
    via Worried-Standard6620
  • 26
    One lady I met at a language exchange told me she intentionally gets the sentence a bit wrong. She spoke little Korean but had extremely good pronunciation, often leading people to think she was really fluent. So in certain situations, she would say "I don't have Korean" and people believed her right away. I think it's always an excellent idea to learn the local languages, even just basic phrases, but this seemed like a good way to avoid misunderstandings.
    via Worried-Standard6620
  • 27
    Posted by u/Cando232 1 day ago Miscellaneous LPT: Use a spoon to clean chunky liquids from carpet (e.g. vomit) Immediately scoop up as much as you can, using some pressure to go into the carpet, the sooner the better. Keep scraping until the spoon no longer draws liquid. After, lightly spray a carpet cleaner and blot dry with paper towels or a rag. If you want it completely clean, keep spraying and drying until the paper towel no longer shows the color of the spill, this is how to get rid of the
    via Cando232
  • 28
    Posted by u/Reinitialization 6 hours ago LPT: If you are looking for a laptop for university, contact the university IT department what they are current using in their fleet. Computers This is not for people who know computers and know what they need. But if you are looking to spend as little as possible and have as few issues as possible and and don't want to spend hours reading up on specs and reviews, ask your Uni's IT department. You
    via Reinitialization
  • 29
    specifically want to ask them what devices are most common in their fleet. That way, you'll get something that they've tested, and more importantly, they have experience in fixing. Don't ask your friend who "knows a lot about computers", unless that friend is also going to be helping you with every computer issue you have for the duration of your study. The HP
    via Reinitialization
  • 30
    830 G9 may not be , the best in it's price range or perfect for you, but if your IT team has 30 of them in their fleet, you can bet that they have seen virtually every issue that the hardware can produce and will know the bios of the machine like the back of their hand. They also might be able to get you a deal on a used one (just be careful they don't try and sell you the lemon)
    via Reinitialization
  • 31
    Posted by u/hiphip4hooha 15 hours ago LPT: Take your electronic boarding pass and make it your lock screen so you don't have to fumble with phone at the gate. Traveling
    via hiphip4hooha

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