Professionals share industry secrets you probably would never have guessed

If you're a specialist in your field, there are probably a few secrets you're aware of. Whether they're a little dirty—like how airlines never clean their coffee pots—or actually heartwarming. In our world where everyone seems to take shortcuts, these secrets might be something you take to your grave. Under the guise of anonymity, however, a bunch of professionals offered up their industry secrets when Reddit user WoOoOoOoShHhHh asked on the thread AskReddit, "What’s an industry secret in the field you work in?" From secrets that will freak you out to others that will make you glad you read this thread, here are some of the best responses.

1. My lips are sealed

"Auto insurance agent. Please, for the love of God, don’t tell auto insurance agents more than you have to. They ask you a question, just say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and answer the question as straight as you can. If you go on and on about your life story, you will probably end up saying something you don’t have to and making your rate higher, or getting yourself declined. We WANT to get you that policy as cheap as possible, only tell us what we need to know and don’t say anything else." - TheoLuminati 

2. A way to excel at transcription

"In Microsoft Office, Word specifically, you can upload recorded interviews and it will transcribe it and even have speaker one and speaker two, three, and four! Basically, eliminating a huge annoying part of the job." - AMW204 

3. The journey is more important than the destination

"Knowing how to research the answer to a question is at least as or even more useful than knowing the answer to begin with. I made a living in IT for a decade with that mindset." - bluebirdgm

4. Support your favorite bands!

"I’m a musician. It’s not really a secret but 90 percent of our revenue is from merch. Spotify plays, show guarantees, etc., everything is menial in comparison to shirt sales. In fact, a big reason bands tour as often as possible is because we can sell more shirts when we’re in front of people." - loocaswoodland 

5. Nine out of 10 dentists recommend...

"I’m a dentist. Here’s the lowdown on toothpaste. As long as it has fluoride they are all basically the same. When I was in dental school the Colgate lady came by and said that everything that says Colgate Total on it is all exactly the same, the only difference is the packaging. So whether it says whitening, or gum protection, or whatever else it is all exactly the same. The exception is sensitivity toothpaste typically does have an extra active ingredient. KNO3, which helps with sensitivity. Don’t ever feel obligated to buy the expensive toothpaste because you think it will be better for your teeth, just buy whatever you like best." - therock21

6. Librarians are ruthless

"Library worker here: the majority of donations we recieve do not end up in circulation (on our shelves) no matter how much you demand we put them there once they're donated. The reason why this is, is because we only add items to the collection that we think will circulate (be checked out). Most libraries get funding based off of statistics. We don't want to waste shelf space on items that peope aren't checking out, as it won't improve our stats. So, unless the donated items are brand new, or by popular authors we will not add them to the collection. We will also weed unpopular items from our collection with extreme prejudice for this reason, much to our patron's horror. These books usually end up being sold at book sales to help generate funding for other library programs." - ZeD00m

7. Milk is milk

"Not an industry I work in per se, but I used to be in a sales role. One of my customers was a milk bottling plant. I was somewhat surprised that they were putting the exact same milk in both organic and non-organic cartons. Turns out all of their milk is organic, but in order to not miss out on the sales of non-organic milk, they just bottle them differently and sell them at different prices." - Atworkwasalreadytake

8. A voice for radio

"Former industry: commercial radio. It's never caller five. It's the caller who sounds best on air." - DSlamAU

9. Pizza secrets

"If you order a pizza but like to choose your own toppings, it’s often cheaper to choose an existing pizza like a Meat Supreme or something with loads of toppings, then swap out all the toppings for ones you want, than to go for the Create Your Own option in the menu. Note, this is much less awkward if you order online than on the phone." - TannedCroissant

10. DIY

"Construction boy here. If your windows or sliding doors are tough to open and close. Nine times out of 10, we put your own dish soap on tracks and the thing works perfectly. It takes five minutes and we charge $150. Dish soap people, it's better than WD40 sometimes." - lyckadese

11. You just need to care!

"Used to screen resumes for small companies. Job 'requirements' are more of a wish-list situation. Never let some unchecked boxes deter you from applying, you have no idea what the applicant pool is like. The biggest boon, especially at small companies, is someone who legitimately cares." - TwoPesetas

12. Taking the mickey out of TSA

"As a former TSA worker, airport security is a lot of theater. TSA is constantly failing plain clothes inspections. I worked with a guy who got fired because someone showed him an ID with a picture of Mickey Mouse on it and he let the person through because he wasn't paying attention." - Askafishy