c/ask-anything

Rant: The day my free add-on broke my entire design file

I downloaded a free vector pack for a client project in Chicago last week, figured it would save me a few hours. Turns out one of the files in that pack had a corrupt stroke that somehow glitched my whole Illustrator document. I lost about 6 hours of work because I hadn't saved a backup in a while. The client deadline was the next morning and I was up until 3am rebuilding everything from scratch. Learned to never grab free assets without checking them first in a blank file. Has anyone else had a random download mess up their whole workflow like that?

Thought alkaline water was total hype until I tried it for 3 weeks straight

Groggy mornings were just part of my life for years until a buddy in Austin dared me to switch to pH 9.5 water for 21 days. By day 10 I wasn't crashing after lunch anymore. Has anyone else had a random wellness thing actually work on them?

Just realized how much my morning commute changed after switching to a bike 6 months ago

I used to drive 25 minutes to my office near downtown Austin, stuck in traffic every single day. Started biking in March after my car broke down, and now it takes me 35 minutes but I'm way less stressed when I get there. The hill on 4th street still kicks my butt but I've gotten faster each month. Anyone else notice a big shift in their mood or energy after changing how they get to work?

That time I thought local honey for allergies was total BS

Lost $120 on a 'guaranteed' dog training course that was just common sense

I saw this online ad for a dog training program promising it would fix any behavioral issue in 7 days. Paid $120 for access to 3 videos and a PDF. First video literally said 'give your dog treats when they do something good' like no kidding lol. Second one was about crating which I already knew from owning dogs for 10 years. The third one was just an upsell to a $400 course. Has anyone else fallen for one of those hyped up training things and regretted it?

Last Tuesday was my worst work day in years. Here is what happened.

I had three crews working three different jobs and every single one called me with a problem by 9am. Drywall batch was bad at one house, a homeowner changed their mind on color mid-roll at another, and my guy left his sprayer tip at the shop. Has anyone else had a day where everything fell apart at the same time?

Walked into a small bookstore in Portland and noticed something weird

I was visiting Powell's Books last Saturday and saw at least 5 people taking photos of the shelves for Instagram but not actually buying anything. The staff member at the register told me they get around 30 people a day doing that now. Has anyone else noticed bookstores turning into photo sets instead of places to buy books?

Wasted $60 on a fancy water filter pitcher that did nothing

Ngl I fell for all those ads about how this brand of filter removes everything from tap water. Spent $60 on the pitcher plus three replacement filters. After two months I noticed my water still tasted the same as before. So I bought a $15 test kit from the hardware store. Turns out the filter was barely taking out any of the minerals or chlorine. I could have just used a $10 jug from the grocery store and gotten the same result. Has anyone else tried those expensive filters and found out they were a scam?

That HVAC guy on Reddit said my filter was fine - 2 months later my coil froze solid

Someone in this sub told me to just vacuum my washable filter instead of replacing it, said a $15 filter was a waste. I listened because they had like 50 upvotes and seemed legit. Then my AC stopped blowing cold in July and the tech said my evaporator coil was a block of ice because airflow was choked. Cost me $180 for the service call plus a $40 filter. Has anyone else gotten bad advice here that ended up costing them real money?

Just hit 500 consecutive days of Duolingo and I'm not sure how to feel about it

I started it as a joke during a slow week at work and now I've got a 500 day streak that I'm oddly proud of. Has anyone else gotten weirdly attached to a number like that?

Found out my cheap calipers were reading 0.5mm off

I was checking some parts for a project last night and kept getting weird measurements. Grabbed my coworker's Mitutoyo calipers and suddenly everything made sense. Anyone else ever trust a cheap tool too long before realizing it was way off?

A coworker said I was 'too quick to answer' during a team meeting and it hit me hard

Last Tuesday in a Zoom call with 8 people, my coworker Lisa paused and said 'Cameron, have you actually listened to what Mark just said?' after I jumped in with a solution before he finished. She was right. I do this constantly, trying to show I'm on top of things, but it shuts down the quieter folks. Now I'm counting to three after someone speaks before I reply. It is uncomfortable but I notice people actually sharing more. Has anyone else tried slowing down their responses in meetings or is this just my personality?

Just hit 10,000 subscriber hours on YouTube and it's wild

I started my channel about woodworking tips 2 years ago just for fun. I checked my analytics yesterday and saw I crossed 10,000 subscriber hours last week. That's like 416 days straight of people watching my videos. I never thought anyone would care about how I sharpen chisels or fix jigs. Has anyone else had a random milestone sneak up on them like that?

Overheard someone at the library say "most questions are just assumptions dressed up" and it stuck with me

I was at the downtown public library last Saturday grabbing a new mystery novel, and I heard a guy at the info desk say to the librarian that most questions people ask are just assumptions dressed up. Like they already think they know the answer but want it confirmed. It made me realize I do that all the time when I'm asking for advice on forums or even just wondering stuff out loud. Has anyone else caught themselves doing that or noticed it in someone else's posts?

One line of feedback fixed my email outreach overnight

A client told me my emails sounded like a robot wrote them. They said stop listing features and start talking about their specific problem. I changed my approach to ask one question about their current workflow instead. Response rate went from 2 percent to about 15 percent in a week. Anyone else get a simple tip that completely changed how they communicate?

Back when I used to just Google everything for answers instead of asking real people

Honestly, I used to just type every little question into Google and hope for the best. Like last year if my phone battery died weird I'd search for forums from 2017 and try to piece it together myself. But about 6 months ago I started actually posting questions in places like this, asking real folks what they do. The difference is huge because you get answers from people who actually dealt with the same thing last week, not some bot or old thread. For example, I asked about a weird buzzing noise in my car AC and someone replied within an hour with the exact fix. Now I always try asking here first before I even open a search bar. Has anyone else noticed how much faster and better the answers are from live people?

A stranger at the gym broke down why my squat form was wrecking my knees

I was doing heavy squats like always, pushing through knee pain thinking it was just part of the grind. This older guy watches me for a set and goes 'your knees are caving in, you're gonna blow something out.' He told me to widen my stance and point my toes out more, and within 2 weeks the pain was gone. Now I film every set to check my knee tracking, and I actually added 20 lbs to my max without hurting. Anyone else had a random person fix a big issue with like 3 words?

Why does nobody talk about how to ask better questions online?

Someone in a forum told me my question was too vague, so now I always include a specific example, like 'How do I fix a leaky faucet when the shutoff valve is stuck?' Has anyone else gotten feedback that actually improved their posts?

TIL a simple chat with my neighbor changed how I ask for help

I was trying to fix my fence in Portland last weekend and got stuck, so I asked him for advice. He just said, 'What part is actually giving you trouble?' instead of giving me a full answer, and it made me realize I always ask questions too broadly. How do you guys figure out the right way to ask for help on a specific problem?

I used to think you had to answer every single question on these forums.

I'd spend like 45 minutes on a Tuesday night writing a novel for some random person asking about car insurance in Florida. Then I saw a mod just link to the FAQ and move on. When did you figure out it's okay to not personally solve every problem?

I was asking questions wrong for years until a friend pointed it out

I always just asked 'what do you think' when I wanted advice, which got me vague answers. Last month, my friend Sam in Denver said my questions were too broad and people didn't know what I really needed. He told me to try being specific, like asking 'what's the first step you'd take to fix a leaking sink' instead. I tried it on a forum about car repairs and got a clear list of three things to check in under ten minutes. How do you guys phrase your questions to get the best answers?

My brother told me to always ask for the full scope before giving a quote

He said it after I got burned on a job last year where the client kept adding 'small' things. Last month I took a project for a bakery in Tacoma and made them list every single detail, down to the font for the menu board. It turned out they wanted way more than I thought, so my quote was double my first guess. Has anyone else had a client try to hide the real work until after you agree?

Shoutout to the person who told me to ask 'what's the worst that can happen'

I was stuck on a forum post about a weird computer bug for days. The usual fixes did nothing. I finally posted a question in the 'Ask Anything' section, but I made it super simple, just 'My program crashes when I open a file, what's the first thing I should check?' I thought people would think it was dumb. Instead, three different folks pointed me to the same thing: a hidden config file I didn't even know existed. I deleted it and the whole thing just worked. I learned that sometimes the best answer comes from asking the most basic question out loud. Has anyone else had a simple question solve a problem that felt huge?

Rant: I tried asking vague questions versus super specific ones in this group

The specific ones, like 'How do I fix a 404 error on a WordPress site after a plugin update,' got actual answers in 20 minutes. Anyone else notice that or am I just lucky?

Serious question, my 8 year old asked me why we call it 'ask anything' if some questions are rude and it completely threw me.