“I Have 30 Email Addresses”: 26 Slightly Unethical Life Hacks That Just Seem To Work

Everyone loves life hacks because of how convenient and fun they tend to be. These handy tips and tricks are often things people randomly discovered while trying to simplify whatever they were doing. They then pass on this information so that other folks don’t have to struggle the way they did.

Sometimes, though, these pro tips might involve unethical or immoral things as well. It’s up to folks to decide if they’re comfortable using them; the examples in this list certainly prove that some people definitely are.

More info: Reddit 

#1

Don’t work hard. Work at the pace of your co-workers. The harder you work, the more that’s expected of you for the same pay.

Image credits: LamesBrady

#2

Tell your coworkers you have terrible hearing (which, personally, partially true, but it’s not nearly as bad as i play it up to be) and everyone feels comfortable whispering around you. i know everything.

Image credits: decayingfoundations

#3

If you WFH, invest in a mouse jiggler. No one cares in the office when you go for a 10 minute stroll for a coffee but heaven forbid my icon goes orange!

Image credits: alexlp

The idea behind using life hacks is to simplify the things we do and to make our day-to-day tasks easier. The only problem is that psychology is still on the fence about the effectiveness of these pro tips. In some cases, research has found that the placebo effect plays a strong role in how effectively a life hack can work.

It’s very tough to test the effectiveness of pro tips because so many factors could affect how people feel or what they do. Even though we don’t fully know the power of life hacks, it seems like they are more popular than ever. According to a survey, nearly 6 in 10 respondents love watching videos about pro tips, and 42% have even shared their own hacks with people.

#4

Hotels often have fees if you cancel too close to your intended stay. In a lot of cases you can however call them, reschedule into the future, then wait a bit and call again to cancel, but this time without the fees.

Image credits: aamurusko79

#5

In our ever accepting world I have made many phone calls for utilities / subscriptions in my wife’s name as she didn’t want to make the phone call. They always insist on speaking to the account owner and there’s generally an awkward pause when I say I am the account owner named (wife’s feminine name) with a clearly manly voice. Can’t say a thing nowadays (rightly so)! Always found it ridiculous anyway as it could be anyone!

Image credits: OkMarket7141

#6

Work as little as possible for the maximum amount of money.Avoid letting your boss know when you've completed tasks ahead of time, as finishing quickly often leads to being assigned even more work. Focus on keeping your boss satisfied without overextending yourself.

Image credits: xarokk

Although these tips and tricks are meant to make our lives better, experts say that they might be actually simplifying our lives too much. In the rush to find the best “shortcut,” we might be missing out on a lot of essential learning. So people might not actually realize how to fend for themselves because they’re too busy finding an easy way out.

Also, sometimes, the simplest way isn’t always the most efficient. If it had no caveats, then it would simply be the way to do things. The fact that it’s a hack might mean that there is a price to pay for choosing that route. In the end, it’s up to each person to decide whether they want to use such pro tips in their daily lives.

#7

Got this one from a friend who’s a judge.

If you get called for jury duty and want to get out of it, the fool-proof way for both sides to throw you out is to say you have a strong respect for law enforcement and if they’ve brought a charge against someone, they must have done something wrong. Even if there’s no evidence, you believe they don’t arrest innocent people. You’ll be home before lunch.

Image credits: Sadiq8474

#8

Not sure if this is unethical at all since they allow it to happen. Get the app for fast food places that have reward points. Any time you go there or just walk by it, look for receipts laying on the ground. Scan in the receipts for reward points. Free food. I have already got over $1600 worth of free food from one app.

When Menards does their 11% off, look for rebate receipts laying around the parking lot. Last year I got several hundred dollars of rebates that way.

Image credits: inkseep1

#9

Using a second email address to repeatedly claim *first-time customer* discounts on websites. Not proud of it, but hey, those deals add up.

Image credits: Blossom-Hazel

Of course, it’s fun to try out different pro tips and to see what actually works well, but research says that it’s important to question the intention behind each life hack. In this list, all of the tips are unethical or immoral in some way, so a person should only try them if they are comfortable dealing with the consequences of the hack.

People who share such pro tips may not always have our best interests at heart and might be selling such secrets to con folks out of something valuable. Rather than just accepting every life hack you come across, it’s important to understand how it impacts all areas of your life and only then proceed with it.

#10

I got summoned for jury duty when my kids were in elementary school. I called them and asked if I need to bring activities for my kids, or if they had a daycare. I was released.

Image credits: Mopngloflo

#11

If you act like your dumb/stupid nobody will ask you to do things for them.

Image credits: tafkatp

#12

If you hit up Golden Corral at 3:30pm, you pay the lunch rate, but they haul out the dinner foods at 4pm!

One of the most important things to consider when choosing to follow a life hack is whether it will actually work for your personality type. People who like having a system in place and enjoy organizing might be better suited to following through with such pro tips.

Others who are intuitive in nature would be better served by following their unique paths and learning on the go. Life hacks are meant to make decision-making easier, but that doesn’t mean everyone needs to follow them just for the sake of it.

#13

Dressing in a suit and having hands full of books / boxes or carrying a clipboard will get you into most places.

Image credits: armahillo

#14

I got tired of Amazon delivering stuff to the wrong apartment building, which is right next-door, but we are both gated. I can’t just go get it. Usually this person will bring it to me within a week or two. I don’t wanna wait a week or two. I’ve flipped out on Amazon and and told them to look at their notes and see how many f*****g times I’ve called about this and NOT waiting three more days to re-order. So now they send me the item immediately and THEN my neighbor brings The OG item to me. so I get two of some things on their mistake. Not sorry either.

Image credits: Myveryowndystopia

#15

For any type of web-delivered service where your physical location doesn't matter (digital downloads, event tickets, online credits), choose a zip code in a place with no sales tax. For this purpose I've memorized 59901, which is Kalispell, Montana.

Image credits: xkulp8

An optimized and efficient life is the goal of pretty much everyone you come across. Even though we’re all trying our best, it’s okay to make mistakes and learn from them. Using life hacks should come naturally and should be more related to efficiency rather than manipulating the people around you.

Unethical life hacks may seem like a ton of fun, but their consequences might be tough to handle. The best you can do is to take these recommendations with a pinch of salt and set your own standards.

Do you have any creative pro tips you swear by? Don’t keep it to yourself, tell us about them too!

#16

Once talked with a homeless man that mentioned he would often empty and clean out a dog food can and re-fill it with beef stew. He ate it outside of the grocery store while he was asking for money or food and would get hooked up.

Image credits: exis10shell

#17

Really good-looking blind people won't care if you're ugly.

Image credits: Resident_Second_2965

#18

I had a conference at a hotel. During a break I went out into the hall and dished up a full breakfast. Turns out the meal was for a completely different conference and our conference only had coffee and muffins. So it was accidental and I never did it again but it would be very easy to do if you needed a meal.

Image credits: houseonpost

#19

If you have a document due your boss/coworker/client/etc and you are not done by the due date but could get it done if you had one more day, find a DLL file in your computer, rename it (like to Budget.xls or Proposal.doc or Presentation.ppt) and email it with an email that says here it is.

When the recipient gets it they wont be able to open it and will email you back thereby buying you time to finish. When done, send them the right one and say “not sure what happened. Here it is again. Try this one.”.

Image credits: stewie_68

#20

I’m my area, the building codes are super strict and a lot of the time you won’t get permission to tear down a house completely to build a new house. However, if you don’t demo the entire house and instead remodel the house, then you’ll get permission. So what we have done in the past is literally demo everything except for like the fireplace and chimney and literally build a brand new house around it. Personally I think that it goes against the spirit of the law, but whatever I’m not in charge of the company.

Image credits: amdabran

#21

Taking extra ketchup packets when you’re at a fast food place just because you know they won’t track them.. And also hotel's freebies.

Image credits: Shy_Peachyy

#22

I take an extra 10min every time I take a s**t at work to take a little break.

Image credits: DrunkenLeprechaun69

#23

Lower your car insurance collision/comp deductibles to $0 right before a snowstorm, or a roadtrip. After the weather/trip, raise the deductible back up. You’ll only be out a few dollars for the few days you had the lower deductible and in the event of an at fault accident, you pay nothing out of pocket.

Image credits: Cool_Username_9000

#24

I have 4 different Audible accounts...1st to get the free book for singing up for each account, but now I just constantly rotate activating and deactivating accounts for a 'first 3 months (1 credit/book per month) for 99 cents per month promotion. As soon as I get my 3rd credit/book, I deactivate and reactivate a different account on same promotion. Sometimes they have deals where you can get 2 books for a credit too. I also, about every 3-4 books will 'return' a book, even if I read it fully and get a free credit /book since they let you do that.

Image credits: Grandizer_Knight

#25

It's surprising easy to fake a utility bill to prove you live somewhere you don't.

Image credits: krs1426

#26

At wholefoods it's cheaper to fill up a soup container with food instead of soup then it is to by the food with the normal boxes ...