20+ Life Hacks From Ordinary People That Conquered the Internet

Some young people are as prepared for an independent life as sailors who have to live on a desert island after a shipwreck. They have no idea how to pay the bills or what to make for dinner, except for scrambled eggs. And that lack of preparation becomes a huge problem when they finally decide to move away from their parents.

We at Bright Side believe that there’s nothing to be ashamed of if you don’t know something, but it’s a shame to not try to at least figure it out. So we decided to collect some tips that will help boost the adult-life skills of those who are only on their first level.

How to organize your life

• If you’re opening a box with a large and heavy item, like a TV, get it out by opening the bottom, setting it down on some firm surface, and simply lifting up the box. © Ayushi-Patel / Quora
• Whenever you need a tool or some household appliances, buy the cheapest one you can find. When that breaks, it means you’ve used it enough and now it’s worth getting a mid-range or expensive one. © marco262 / Reddit
• When you wash your windows, wipe them vertically inside and horizontally outside. If you see the stripes on the glass when you’re done, you will know which side they are on. © Overheard. Lifehacks / vk

• Put your spare bed sheets inside one of the pillowcases for that set. This keeps the set altogether, so you can just grab it when you want to change your sheets, and it also seems to help keep the linens fresh. © CorporateStef / Reddit

• Tea stains in a mug (those brown rings) can be easily cleaned with baking soda. Just put some baking soda into your cup, rub the spots, and then rinse. © doitforsapho / Twitter

• Put a laundry hamper in the spot where you tend to toss your clothes, so that when you take them off, you toss them directly into the hamper. This makes your space tidier and, this way, all of your clothes will already be collected in the hamper when you’re ready to wash them. © cactusflowers / Reddit

• Take pictures of everything before you move into your new rented apartment and make sure any issues you find are documented and signed by both you and the apartment office. Trust me, they’ll blame any defects on you otherwise. © zerbey / Reddit

• Remember that 2 is one and one is none. If you have a bottle of shampoo, you effectively have no bottles of shampoo because once you run out of it, you can’t wash your hair until you remember to get some at the store. Also, keep a shopping list. © Nyrrix / Reddit

• If you lose something in your room, take a picture of your room, put it on Facebook, and have your friends play “I’m a spy.” © Sakshi-Mundra / Quora

• Do you want to save some time on ironing? Take a long strip of aluminum foil, put it on the top of the ironing board, cover it with a cloth you’re going to iron, and start ironing. The foil will reflect the heat and your clothing item, for example, your pants, will be immediately ironed from both sides. @ Overheard. Lifehacks / vk

Kitchen life hacks

• I love everything fried but I don’t want my jeans to stop fitting me. So I fry everything until I get a beautiful golden crust but without any oil. I just place parchment paper for baking on the bottom of the pan. Then I fry the products the same way as I usually do, but without any oil. © Overheard. Lifehacks / vk
• Don’t keep rye and white bread in the same bread box. Don’t store onions in a plastic bag — it’s better to buy a box with a lid and air holes. And keep carrots away from onions. Keep potatoes away from light, moisture, and onions. © lonklo_eclipse / Twitter
• It’s a good idea to fry chopped onions with chopped carrots and then freeze this mix. And then make some broth and freeze it too. It’ll turn soup making from a routine task into a fun process of putting frozen food blocks into a pot with meat and potatoes. © ksue_may / Twitter

• Don’t put old plates with flowers or golden patterns in the microwave. And aluminum and metal objects are also no good for that. Plastic plates can melt (but not all of them, you have to look for a special sign on them when buying) and disposable paper plates can burn. It’s best to use glass tableware. © yourelle_mrr / Twitter

• Buy a lot of food containers. When you cook a meal, don’t cook one portion — make several portions at once. Then put the spare portions in the containers and keep them in the fridge or freeze them. With this hack, you get quick and easy microwaveable meals that you can heat up later. © GrumpyOldDan / Reddit

Health

• Ventilate your home more often and make it a habit. Otherwise, you’ll always be a sluggish person with a headache.© smart_grid_ / Twitter

• You have to visit the dentist once every 6 months, even if you’re not suffering from a toothache. And don’t postpone the treatment if your doctor says that you have tooth decay, even if your teeth don’t hurt. Because when they start to hurt, you’ll pay for your treatment at least 3, if not 5, times more. © annonedomini / Twitter

Financial life hacks

• When you buy things online, leave items in the shopping cart for a while. There is a good chance that the website is tracking your purchase and will lower the price over time to entice you into buying. © Whatmeworry4 / Reddit

• Credit cards aren’t free money. Please, don’t spend money you don’t have without real necessity or you may get into a vicious cycle that can lead to a lot of problems. © discoshit / Reddit

• The key to success is learning how to plan your expenses. The priority should be the payment of your bills and transportation. The next category is food and household expenses. Then go your phone and internet payments. Then clothes, but only really necessary items that are practical, durable, and inexpensive. And the money that is left over after you’ve paid for all of these things, you can use for unplanned expenses and whatever you wish. © Dain Eysward / Yandex. Kew

• Don’t get a pet right away without thinking about it first. If you want to provide them with a comfortable life, you’ll have to constantly pay for it, especially when it comes to treatments. And you can’t leave them for a long time if you have to travel somewhere. @ Maria Gorevaya / Yandex.Kew

• When I fill out a questionnaire to get a discount card at some shop, I just put a random date instead of my birthday. And it’s so nice to get notifications throughout the year, that say that this magical day is coming and the shop is willing to give me a discount and additional bonuses. It’s impossible to spend all these bonuses on my real birthday, so they get wasted. @ Overheard. Lifehacks / vk

What advice would you give to a person who’s finally decided to move away from their parents? What life hack would you like to share with them?