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People Divulge The Number One Rule Of Their Moral Code

People Divulge The Number One Rule Of Their Moral Code
Aarón Blanco Tejedor/Unsplash

A moral code like a compass. It's a guiding set of rules or principles that humans live by. They lead the way we move through the world and interact with the people around us.

Some believe that moral come from a divine energy that implants that code into our consciousness. Those morals have then been translated into text and passed down by religious authorities. Not following those sacred values could bring on serious consequences.

Others believe that the moral compass is innately within all of us and is biologically and culturally evolutionary. That voice telling you right from wrong has always lived within us.



David Ludden Ph.D. wrote that humans have been enacting a moral code long before we could even write down what it was:

"We also have an innate moral code: Do not kill, lie, steal, or poach another's mate."
"These injunctions weren't just handed down to us on stone tablets. Rather, they're inscribed in our DNA."

We wanted to know what is the number one moral or value on your list of moral codes.

Redditor MetanoiaBender asked:

"What is the #1 rule in your moral code?"

Here's a list of important life lessons.

Don't mess with people's livelihoods.

"Don't f*ck with a man's livelihood."

"I was a brand new manager and made a joke about firing someone and instead of laughing they looked scared and upset. A more senior manager saw that and took me aside - he said "if you have the power to hire and fire, it's not ever a joke. Don't f*ck with a man's livelihood.'"

"Never forgot it and it served me well."

- Makerbot2000

"As an addendum, don't [send] sh*tty emails like 'Please see me in my office.'"

- Jim3535

"Mandatory meeting Monday morning 9am, all staff must attend".

"We turn up expecting mass layoffs, got some OHS bullsh*t."

"However, expecting the worst, I had already sent my resume off to the company across the road. They hired me. Also 50% of staff sent off resumes because of this e-mail. Many got offers and left. So many key people left, the other staff were overworked and were soon over it. It cascaded to a mass exodus within about 6 weeks of the e-mail."

"Don't send sh*tty emails."

- PM_UR_REBUTTAL

"After becoming a manager I made it a rule to explain unexpected meetings."

"'Hey I have an update on client [name]. Can we chat when you get a chance?'"

"Don't scare people."

- wayoverpaid

"As a former retail manager, this one can get tricky. It's certainly preferable to approach hard conversations with the tactic you described whenever possible. That being said- when navigating the complex dynamic of a sales floor with multiple employees within earshot any implication of a meeting with a lower level associate will be seen by others as disciplinary. This causes gossip and strife between the people working under you."

"What I personally would do is find the employee I need to speak with, jovially approach them, and ask, 'Hey will you walk the sales floor with me for a second?' I would then take a roundabout way to my office while discussing friendly personal-life or hobby related topics or upcoming store events. Once out of earshot of others and the employee is at ease, inform them, 'Hey so we need to step into my office for a second and talk about this situation that happened.' If it's an employee with a different gender, bring in a manager who shares their gender. At this point they are generally receptive and appreciative of the way you approached them and respected their privacy. Even if the employee knows the conversation could end in termination of employment."

- xdylanxfrommyspace

How to make friends.

"If you want to have friends, you must first be one."

- Back2Bach

"To be interesting you must also be interested."

- KingKongDuck

"Do you mean interested in learning? If so, that's good advice. A lot of people just aren't curious enough, and their personality takes a toll."

"Learning about arts and history goes such a long way."

- appleparkfive

"Used to be so curious and interested in things but my job makes me learn so much so fast that outside of work idc to learn anything anymore unless it's beneficial to wife and kid."

"Thinking about it now, I need to change jobs when possible."

- TheWoahgie

"I'm always super open with people and try to get them to be open with me but no one ever opens up as much as I do and I don't understand it."

- introusers1979

"You might be considered an over-sharer. Your frankness with strangers might be seen as off-putting because it's not the norm. It happens and people ought to be aware."

- ron_swansons_meat

"Slow down your opening up. If you open too fast and demand others to open just as fast, many people just shut down."

- cultural-exchange-of

Always apologize if you've done something.

"Apologize if you know you've done wrong."

- xSalty_Lightningx

"Yooo this was a huge lesson my father taught us growing up. He really emphasized the strength it takes to apologize. More parents need to focus on this."

- Hi--Cats

"Not only apologize but do better in the future."

- I_am_Anna94

"Yes, THIS. I see so many folks throwing out apologies so easily, yet do nothing to actually make amends to whatever it was they did wrong."

- RedRainss

"I remember when i was a kid and I f*cked up real bad, I think I dropped the C word in front of one of my aunts or something like that. It wasn't close to the first time I'd been caught using profanity and I figured I'll just mumble sorry and bow my head 'n pout and weasel my way outta this."

"My grandfather wasn't having that sh*t. He told me to grab a plate and throw it on the floor, hard enough to make it break. I did. He said now tell it sorry. I did. He said is the plate ok? I said no it's still broken. He said now apologize to the other plates. I did. He said is the plate ok? I said no it's still broken. He said did the other plates move closer to you? I said no. He said maybe now you understand."

- Redditor

"That's a hell of a way to get the point across. I'm pretty sure it would stick though."

- Batfuzz86

Former Anti-Vaxxers Explain What Actually Made Them Change Their Mind | George Takei’s Oh Myyy

Honesty is key.

"Never be afraid to be honest or kind. Both can be very hard in the right circumstances."

- KayBerna

"Or be afraid and do it anyway."

- oneworkinglimb

"True that. Courage isn't the lack of fear, but the willingness to move forward when afraid."

- KayBerna

"If you have to choose between being right and being kind, choose being kind and you'll be right every time."

- haysoos2

"How do you decide between speaking an honest truth/opinion which will hurt feelings, or telling a harmless lie out of kindness instead?"

- __Guy_Incognito

"Here's how it works out for me in life; kindness is a whole lot more important that telling everyone your honest OPINION. That's the key right there - if your opinion is likely going to hurt someone, maybe do your best to put the other person's feelings first, but it doesn't mean you have to lie. If you're in a situation where you're still being pushed to share your honest opinion, try to do so in a nice way. If, however, you are trying to tell someone an honest FACT, something that is grounded in reality and will affect them regardless, you are obligated to share that out of principle."

"I work in the veterinary field, and have seen many pets be diagnosed with cancer, skin disease, giardia, UTI, etc. It wouldn't help anyone for those owners not to know their pet it sick, no matter how expensive or difficult the treatment is. Similarly, before we have a diagnosis, treating that worried owner with kindness in the face of the unknown is sometimes the only bit good in that person's day."

- KayBerna

Always leave the offer on the table.

"I won't leave people out. I was frequently left out growing up, and it makes you feel an inch tall."

"I always offer and then offer again, to include people. It's always nice to have the offer even if you don't want to come along."

- Fatherchristmassdad

"Similar to this I always make it a point to make my own judgments about people. When I was growing up it was considered social suicide to be my friend. The only way I could make friends as a kid was if I befriended the new kid before someone else told them not to be my friend. I think the least people can do for each other is make their own judgments after getting to know someone a bit and to not make plans within earshot of others unless you invite everyone who can hear it. People are social animals, it hurts to be excluded from the group."

- kexingwen

Replace the roll!

"If I'm the one who finishes the toilet paper roll, I'm the one who replaces it. Sadly my family doesn't do the same and then I have to waddle to the cabinet to get a new roll."

- No_Lawyer_8901

"Honestly, if you are the one who gets it close to finished, you should replace it and leave the early empty near enough to use (to finish)."

"What if it's a really messy one and you need more than just the last little bit?"

- DominicB547

"This is where the military rule of 'two is one. One is none' makes sense to me. In my house every toilet has at least one spare roll ready to go within arms reach of the throne. We know that if you start the last one then you should re-stock after."

- Immediate-Escalator

Treat people the way you want to be treated.

"Don't be an a-hole."

"I go out of my way to not have to deal with a-holes, and it's time well spent."'

- iWillNeverReplyToYou

"The golden rule really matters. Treat others the way you want to be treated."

"It's one of those sayings that you have to actually analyze and absorb, and life changes for the better. "A penny saved is a penny earned" is another one we all hear, but when you think about it and truly absorb the mentality, life changes for the better."

"There's so many sayings we all hear, and a lot of them really can make life better."

- appleparkfive

"Don't be an a**hole is the first rule in our house, too. Second is assume best intentions (on the part of whomever you are dealing with). There are others but we've always said if you stick to those two solidly, you'll do just fine."

- toweltraveler

"Also, I swear by 'don't assume the other person is intending to be malicious.' There's been so much house drama (in my student university house) bc 'so and so' thinks 'so and so' is doing this to spite her, single her out, targeting her."

"Always assume there's no beef, and there will be no beef."

- dirtyseacrystals

Keep your word.

"Keep your word, always."

- Gulfcoastpest

"Yes!! I try and live by this as well! If I decide to make plans, I follow through, if I say I'll be there, I'll be there. I grew up with constant disappointment, and as an adult, I realized a lot of people pay lip service but have no intention of following through, they just want to look good in the moment. I try and live up to my word as much as possible because of this. I may not have a lot of friends, but god damn it, I'm honest and dependable."

- RoguesTongue

"This needs to be paired with 'learn how to say NO.' It'll make it a lot easier to keep your word if you don't give it when you really shouldn't."

- nowiforgotmypassword

"I genuinely try to do this... I really do. But I am pretty bad about it. Eventually I realized I need to be more realistic about what I expect myself to do, not just for others, but for myself. But it's been a learning process. Usually it's small things: "I'll show up at 11:00" then show up 11:05 when it's a 5 minute walk, that sort of thing. I always feel terrible about it."

- Stekun

"I kept reading to see if anyone else felt this way. I'm bad about it, but I always thought I had the best of intentions… I was told by a therapist in my teens that just saying one's intention out loud was a good way to get past the inaction and antisocial tendencies I had from my severe anxiety/depression. The theory being that the more one announces one's intentions to other people, the more one feels accountable and is more likely to follow through with their plans. In my case, it didn't work and I just let people down and felt more guilt. Being more realistic helped me develop boundaries and also determine who was able and unable to handle the personal space I needed, which was (and is) a lot."

- lisarista

Can malice be explained by ignorance?

"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by ignorance."

- Downvote_machine_AMA

"People are only capable of that which they are conscious."

- MetanoiaBender

"Now I understand why people do that. It's a survival mechanism. But instincts aren't always our friend in a civilized society."

- ChronoLegion2

"The way I've heard it was 'incompetence' rather than 'ignorance'; mostly same idea."

- shall_always_be_so

Avoid gossip.

"Don't tell truths that are not yours to tell. You don't need to be spreading people's business around without their permission."

- gouhobandgraw

"I think this has value, but some of the big things should be told to protect others. Being hands off when someone will likely repeat an action that hurts others is the actual worst."

- J_Bunn

"A related moral code I try to follow is to not take gossip to heart. So when people talk trash about someone I have never met I do my best to ignore it and form my own opinion. If someone is really trash, they're going to show you and you could decide for yourself."

- gouhobandgraw

Walk a mile in their shoes.

"Always put yourself in the other person's shoes. It really help see thing from their perspective."

- jman377355

"Before you insult someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you insult them, you're a mile away, and you have their shoes."

- Hotarg

Our morals dictate how we move through the world, and ultimately how the world will treat us in return. By treating others with kindness and respect can bring that back to you. Suddenly, you're surrounded by people who care about the world just as much as you do.

But the same can be said without following this code. If you treat others poorly, you can expect the same in return.

It's your choice. What do you decide?

Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

People Explain What 'Rich People Sh*t' They Do Even Though They're Not Rich

Reddit user Abbas_Noorani asked: 'what is some rich sh*t you do even though you are not rich?'

photo of woman holding white and black paper bags
Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

When I started college, I had every intention of cooking all my meals. It became very apparent very quickly that I simply didn't have the time to accomplish this, and I became the Takeout Queen.

I ordered food constantly. Between getting a monthly "allowance" from my dad (intended to go towards groceries), finding coupons taped to my apartment door everyday, and essentially being "allowed" to tip less than handsomely since I was a college student, I was able to afford this.

When I graduated and moved into my own place, things changed. I was too old to not tip properly, I didn't get any supplementary money from my family, and I had more expenses, such as rent. Still, I continued to order food, and it became my main expense.

My friends tell me the way I order food is only meant for "rich people." I have to skimp on everything else in order to have enough saved to support this. It's definitely true, but I don't think this habit will ever change.

I'm not the only one that does "rich people stuff." Redditors do lots of things that is classified that way, despite not being rich, and they are ready to share their stories.

It all started when Redditor Abbas_Noorani 16 asked:

"What is some rich sh*t you do even though you are not rich?"

Ravenous

"Food. I buy what I want and I try new stuff. I like cooking."

– 34i79s

"Grocery shopping without concern for budget is what made me realize I had made it back in the day. Good times."

"Now I have hard budgets again and it truly sucks. You question every damn decision and convince yourself to do without or downgrade to the lowest priced quality."

– txmail

"On the same boat. The other day I looked at expensive butter that I used to stock up on without even thinking twice and sighed."

– cat101786

Monthly

"Forget to cancel my free trial."

– Adept_Insurance5550

"Damn. Thanks for the reminder."

– -Bk7

"I'm still a member of AOL."

– __SpeedRacer__

Too Hot

"I leave the fridge door open when getting the butter out even though my dad said it would cost billions and send us to the streets."

– frank-sarno

"I leave the front door open when I pop out to grab my mail. Took me years of living on my own to realize the AC bill doesn’t shoot up by hundreds of dollars if I do that."

– MelodramaticQuarter

Necessities

"Buy the good toilet paper."

– FrankGehryNuman

"Absolutely!"

"Good toilet paper. Can't stand cheapo toilet paper, you give yourself a surprise when your finger goes through the paper when wiping your chuff. Don't get me started on that stuff they used to have in hospitals! It was awful - sandpaper that didn't soak up but rather moved stuff 🤐"

– helensmelon

Clean And Sweep

"I have a maid that comes weekly. I've found that my sanity is worth the cost."

– Eringobraugh2021

"Weekly? Oo la la!"

– a**ypantz72

Comfort Matters

"My thermostat stays at the temperature setting of what is most comfortable to me and nothing will change that."

– Cyb3rTruk

"Lol this really outlined how different climates can be. My thought was "Yeah, I'm going to be as cozy and warm as I want and not freeze in the comfort of my own home.""

– McCoyIsFun

Double

"Some days I have two sandwiches at lunch. I smile as I watch all my fellow proletariat eating their single sandwich."

– ShambolicPaul

"Brotip: Cut your sandwich an infinite number of times and rearrange the pieces into two full sandwiches. Don't give your money away to Big Sandwich!"

– NotInherentAfterAll

Sparkling

"Paying for car cleaning."

– angydevil

"Justified, tho my dad would kill me."

– Abbas_Noorani

The Big Cheese

"I sometimes buy name brand cheese instead of the store brand."

– NeuroguyNC

"Tillamook or nothing for me! I’ll buy store brand beans and paper towels and other stuff. But not for my cheese!"

– VariegatedThumb

Replenish

"We have a garage fridge that is full of all different kinds of beverages."

– SixStinkyFingers

"It's not the fridge itself, it's keeping it stocked!"

– 4x32Studio

A House Is A Home

"I own a house...."

– 1d0m1n4t3

"Oh damn rich people sh*t."

– Abbas_Noorani

"We shouldn't be able to joke about owning a modest home being rich people sh*t. Anyone who works full time should be able to afford a home."

– 1d0m1n4t3

Write Better

"I buy the gel comfort pens. Makes me feel I'm a higher class when writing at work. Smooth crisp consistent ink."

– UltraCoolPimpDaddy

"I have gotten into arguments over people stealing my G2 .07."

– savvyspoon2

Me Too!

"I buy small trash bags for the bathroom trash bins. My whole family uses grocery bags, but I don’t like how they always rip at the bottom."

– Deleted User

It's Required!

"No Margarine in my house, Butter Only, and lots of it. My arteries think I'm rich."

– weisblattsnut

Unused

"I have HBO but I don’t watch it."

– MillionToOneShotDoc

"I have Netflix, Prime, Hulu, and Disney Plus. Don’t watch any of it. Watch YouTube all the time and I’m too stupid to get Premium."

– AngryDerf

Now, that's the definition of having money to burn!

Of course, I wouldn't know. I need to save money for my food!

Couple exchanging rings on wedding day
Photo by Saeed Sarshar on Unsplash

Generally, when people talk about marriage, they get excited about the big wedding day and the honeymoon thereafter.

People don't always talk about what happens in the marriage after the "honeymoon phase" wears off, and they certainly don't talk about the other long-term realities of marrying someone for life.

Pondering this, Redditor Ok_Reality-77 asked:

"What did you realize after getting married?"

It's Not All Romantic

"Marriage isn’t just about the person you want to have fun with. It’s also about the person you want to spend $10,000 on a new furnace with, or go to a funeral with, or get a flat tire with."

"Your spouse should make your way in life easier, especially during the hard times."

- aggressivelysingle

Wedding Invitation Drama

"I don’t get upset if I don’t make the cut for someone else’s wedding, that s**t is expensive."

- coconutmama77

"I had one wedding where I got pretty ticked off about not being invited, to be honest."

"One of the bridesmaids at my wedding got married a few years after we did. She was out in Baltimore, and we are UK-based, but she wanted my wife as her bridesmaid too, so we of course flew over. We were the only ones not local."

"In the rehearsal the day before, one of the groomsmen wasn't there, so I stood in for him."

"Then later that night, I was told that the wedding was a small affair and that only my wife was invited to the ceremony. I would be only an evening guest. They just neglected to mention that on the invite."

"It caused massive ripples among the guests because there was no reason for snubbing me like that."

"I really liked the groom and he was in bits trying to deal with the psycho fit his bride was throwing about everything, so I ended up just doing as told so as not to cause an issue for him on his day."

"Years later, she asked my wife on a video call if we wanted to come visit them sometime soon, and her husband said to her, 'You're kidding, right? You know he doesn't like you after the wedding s**t, right?'"

"She was shocked to learn that I thought she was an a**hole, lol (laughing out loud)."

- Wind_Yer_Neck_In

The Wrong Partner

​"Bad marriage does way more harm than being alone."

- rosiebunnies

"When I left my first husband for being an irredeemable a**hat, I truly thought I’d sworn off marriage forever. But here I am, 14 years into my second marriage, and I couldn’t be more thankful that I was wrong about marriage being a bad thing."

- -comfypants

"I’ve had my own bad relationships. Then I started to look at my parents' unhealthy relationship but then saw that my brother actually has a really good one, and that helped put things into perspective. Some people should be together, and others should not."

- Lancefree

The Value of Disagreements

"That true partnership means conflict is inevitable but productive."

"Part of me knew we'd disagree, but I took some time to know the best way to work through it. It's not being a doormat and it's not being right every time."

- d20sapphire

The Importance of Alone Time

"How much I NEED alone time..."

- blacksweater

"We live in a house larger than we need. So we each have hobby areas and our own bathroom in addition to general s**t we don't do together. Our friends think it's weird, but we are strong as f**k, and their relationships didn't survive the pandemic."

- GoldenBarracudas

Secret Personalities

"People can be really, REALLY good at hiding who they truly are."

"People keep telling me I must have missed signs. I think they just haven’t encountered people that can change on a dime like my ex-husband."

- InstantElla

Increased Income

"How much easier it is to afford things as a joint couple with two incomes."

- Ornery-Cattle1051

"To me, this is one of the few downsides to being single. I like my single life but do not like my single income."

- SnoopsMan

Constant Forgiveness

"Marriage is a constant exercise in forgiveness."

"Be sure you love them, like for real."

"Luckily for me, I do."

- pussinbootskitty

Marrying the Family

"They say you marry their family. You absolutely do."

"One day I was a girlfriend, and the next I was holding my husband's grandmother's hand while she died. I was dragged into family fights the likes of which I'd never seen. I've been loved and weaponized and defended like I could never fathom."

"I laughed at people saying they married the whole family. I was so wrong."

- IHeartChipSammiches

"You put this into words so beautifully. I never would have imagined how much I love his family as my own, even though they bug the crap out of me sometimes, lol (laughing out loud)."

- chipmunk_butt

Communication is Key

"That good communication is vital to a relationship."

"The ability to have a calm, rational conversation over any topic is something to strive for. The trust that the two of you can talk about anything in a safe environment is key. The ability to be honest and open with each other."

"Communication, y'all. It works."

- agharta-astra

Ditch the Highway

"You spent X amount of years doing things your way. So has your new spouse. Just because it's not your way doesn't mean it's wrong."

"It's okay to compromise, but it's also okay to realize that some things may come down to My Way, Their Way, and Our Way."

"My husband and I learned a lot from each other but 15 years later, we have never, NEVER compromised on how to fold laundry so we just each do our own. I don't mind doing his, but I'll fold it my way. He'll easily wash and dry mine, but he folds his way. It's nice that the laundry is done, but then I had to refold everything."

"For those wondering, I fold shirts in a tri-fold rectangle and he does some weird square thing. Incompatible in our dresser drawers."

- Scucer

Hands and Height

"I have to add (this may sound bizarre) that if one of you is left-handed and the other is right-handed, you will most certainly run into some problems."

"It seems ridiculous, but where you place things that you need multiple times on a daily basis comes down to space and which hand you use (e.g., dish soap, hand soap, etc. Basically anything on a counter in a kitchen or a bathroom)."

"This also applies to height differences. Sometimes we really, literally have to find the in-between, or accept that one or the other will be doing it for themselves and it’s not insulting. It’s just really for the best sanity of us both."

- HGLiveEdge

Cherish the Time

"I must say, for me, it would be Time. Time moves SOOOOO very slow, and SOOOOOOOOOOOOO very fast."

"I married my wife yesterday."

"We closed on our first house yesterday."

"We had our boys YESTERDAY."

"I finished our basement with my own two hands (and my best friends’ hands) yesterday."

"We sold our first home yesterday."

"My father passed away YESTERDAY."

"My boys started high school and middle school yesterday."

"I just made an @ss of myself tonight and needed to apologize to my wife! (This actually was tonight.)"

"Seriously, everything feels like yesterday, but it is moving by so quickly. I’m just trying to hold on, thankfully, she’s here with me."

- pencerules

Marriage Plus Kids

"Everyone was wrong, marriage changed nothing."

"But children... Children change everything."

- korinth86

"100% agree. We lived together before we got married. Absolutely nothing in our relationship changed. But kids. Oh lord, that changes everything."

- StannVeal

Medically Responsible

"It changes who can kick whom out of the hospital room. And that was why I got married."

"My husband got married for the feel’s and the frilly stuff. I got married so he/we inherit each other's stuff and get the final say on end-of-life stuff (it was a rough couple of years, I lost a lot of family in a short span)."

"Can all that be done separately from marriage? YEP. Is it viewed as seriously? Nope. Can it be done as easily and in one fell swoop? Nope."

"(This, more than the feelings, to me, is why people should be able to marry whom they choose, regardless of gender.)"

- sageautumn

Right in the Feels

"I like saying, 'My wife…' even more than I thought I would."

"We’ve each been married before, and we were together for 7 years before we got around to getting married (we knew where it was going very early). I didn’t think it would feel like that big of a deal to say, but… I love my wife, and the experience of referring to her is enough to make me smile."

- BetweenCoffeeNSleep

While there were some tough realities mixed into this list, most of the experiences shared here were heartwarming.

Marriage might be diminished by some to be just a piece of paper, but for those who take the symbolism seriously, there is some real happiness in store for them.

Not everyone excels in the art of flirting, and who can blame them?

Getting the attention of someone you admire can be nerve-wracking, and your lack of confidence in the heat of the moment can be amplified and make you appear less attractive to the object of your affection.

Curious to hear examples of what to avoid in the pursuit of passion, Redditor Veetojek asked:

"What was the worst attempt at flirting you have ever seen?"

These advances are just genuinely bizarre.

Inept Pupil

"My friend in college started hanging out with 'pick up artists' and decided to demonstrate his prowess to us on the quad. His strat was to approach a girl and ask what she thought he should make for dinner that night (I guess it was supposed to lead to an invitation?) He then very-much-not-confidently approached a girl who was clearly in a hurry and, staring at the ground, delivered the line. The girl glared at him and, with great annoyance, said 'I have no idea! Spaghetti, or something?' And my buddy, still staring at the ground, said 'Oh-oh-ok. Uh, thanks' and shuffled away."

He also “learned” from this group that you’re supposed to touch a girl’s arm every time she laughs to condition her to associate your touch with a release of dopamine or endorphins or something. So I witnessed this several times as well, never done with any subtlety or charisma. He did finally get laid after about eight months of trying but the whole thing seemed creepy to me."

– Dr_broadnoodel

Weird Pitch

"It was me. In sixth grade I wrote a girl’s name on a rock and threw it at her during recess. Apparently they don’t like that 🤷🏻♂️"

– neon_eyeballs

"Did your approach change much from those days with the introduction of pokeballs?"

– OP

Stranger Danger

"On a walk with my dog, hot sweaty and not in the best clothes. This man drove behind me following me for a few minutes and I looked and said can I help you? He said let’s go on a date! Hop in!"

"I said no thanks and he revved his engine, asked if I was sure then sped off. I was legit scared."

– Allieora

These attempts at flirting are straight from a sitcom.

Down The Rabbit Hole

"A man asked a woman sitting next to me, 'I think your name is Alice since I'm lost in Wonderland.'"

– boukaree

"Oof. That made me cringe, imagining it."

– No_Letterhead_7683

Hairy Situation

"Guy on a trip saw a new girl in our group that he found cute. Decided to take the insult-as-a-form-of-flirting path and told her she had really hairy arms for a girl. Mind you, she had incredibly fair skin, so her hairs stood out more than usual. She, having too nice of a personality to say anything, laughed it off, covered her arm in a real smooth manner, and went on with whatever conversation was happening. My guy thought it worked because it 'made her laugh;' and you know you've got the green light when she laughs at your jokes. The next day he goes up to her during breakfast thinking he locked it up and exclaims, 'Oh my god your arms are so hairy that it's gonna make me sick!!' She doesn't laugh this time, runs back to her room, and changes into a long-sleeve shirt. She proceeded to wear long-sleeve shirts or sweaters for the remainder of the trip...in the middle of July. They didn't have a single interaction for the remaining 4 days."

– TYRONEmonies

Fumbling For Words

"My own. Drunk at a party talking to a cute girl she takes her glasses off. I thought this would be a good time for a genuine compliment. What my mouth said 'I like your face better with your glasses on' she just laughed. Pretty sure what I was trying to say is I like your glasses, and you have a pretty face. I just combined them."

– HooterEnthusiast

Clumsy Gymnast

"When I was in 3rd grade I had a crush on my babysitter."

"I decided to impress her by demonstrating my acrobatic prowess. I sprung from the side of a spiral slide and grabbed the monkey bars without touching the ground. Unfortunately, my hands slipped, I flipped through the air, and shattered my wrist in two places upon landing."

"My first thought was, 'Don't cry; be tough.' then I saw my wrist, it looked like a sine wave. I immediately started crying."

– ANerdCalledMike

Some guys come on way too strong

Hey, Barkeep!

"I saw two girls talking at a bar, and this guy walks up and interrupts them with a 'Heheheyyy, what are you ladies drinkin tonight eh? (Slaps the bar) Hey Barkeep, lemme get a couple rounds for these two!' They of course took the drinks, but promptly relocated away from that obnoxious dude."

– Xdude199

Bye, Scooter

"When I was younger I worked in a bar with a guy nicknamed 'Scooter.'"

"He'd say to any girl that was alone at the bar, 'Hi! My name is Scooter. I like to f'k. How do you like me so far?'"

"Some would glare and walk away, and a couple of times he got slapped across the face...but eventually he'd get a giggle."

"And he never went home alone."

– PJMurphy

Scene From A Gas Station

"When I was working at a gas station I had a dude just walk up to the register and just go ‘hey you have a boyfriend’"

"Of course he didn’t take ‘I’m not interested’ for an answer after. My assistant manager had to all put shove him out the door to get him to leave."

– SilverSoulFox

Daddy Cringey

"I worked in retail for a long time."

"I’ll never forget the time when this late 50s looking guy blatantly cat called an older woman who was wearing black boots. He said, 'Damn baby you gonna wear those boots all day for daddy?'. Then she goes, 'Not a chance.' He went quiet and she walked away. I had to hold in my laughter cause it was just so cringey to see."

– xSevusxBean4y

Either one's advances can come off as presumptuous and cocky or vulnerable and meek.

In most cases, people looking for love are overthinking it.

Here's a tip: Just relax and be yourself when approaching someone you like.

Being natural will not make you look desperate.

While there are no guarantees in scoring a date with this approach, chances are that with practice, you'll gain more confidence without overdoing it.

As the saying goes, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Nonetheless, several brands and businesses will sometimes make noticeable changes, be it to reach a wider audience, or simply to shake things up a bit.

In some cases, the effort pays off, like Dunkin' Donuts, who decided to stretch beyond simply selling doughnuts and coffee, eventually even dropping the "Donuts" from their name, but losing none of their popularity.

Other times, things don't go as smoothly, such as when IHOP (an acronym for the International House of Pancakes) temporarily changed its name to IHOB (International House of Burgers), which turned out to be nothing but a weeklong publicity stunt, but was met with anger and vitriol from it's fanbase during that controversial week.

Redditor Fflewddur_Fflam_ was curious to hear what other brands the Reddit community thought betrayed their core audience to disastrous results, leading them to ask:

"Who abandoned their core audience and paid the price for it?"

Humans Are Technically Animals...

"Animal Planet."

"Their tagline became 'surprisingly human.'"

"Nobody wants to watch ANIMAL Planet for people."

"They have other channels."- rainbirdmelody

You Could Say Their Mission Slipped Through The "Cracks"...

"Cracked.com."

"There were a couple years there where they transformed from a second rate Mad knockoff to some of the smartest, funniest stuff on the internet."

"Then the people who held the purse strings decided listicles and photoshop contests were more profitable than a writing staff."- MichaelMyersResple

"StumbleUpon."

"It was a small website giving you randomized internet pages which I used to browse for hours as they were so fun."

"Now it turned into Mix and I have no clue what it is."

"Pretty sure no one uses it and it makes me sad."- MightyDaisy

Working On It GIF by KAT BALLGiphy

Less Handcrafted, More Hand-Me-Down

"Etsy."

'Used to be a fairly cool place to buy and sell mostly handcrafted stuff and items to make handcrafted stuff."

"Now it's basically shady Amazon with worse shipping."

"Everyone seems to be drop shippers and a lot of the more niche crafter/artisan things are pushed out and overwhelmed by cheaper, mass produced goods."- THIS_IS_MY_JOYSTICK

The Dreaded Paywall...

"Photobucket!"

"Back when forums were still a thing, Photobucket would host your images for free."

"Then one day they decided EVERYONE would have to pay monthly, no free tier, nothing."

"We all collectively agreed we would not be paying, and that was that."

"I feel like it may have contributed to the death of forums."

"Ruined a few of my car build threads, that's for sure."

"To this day they still send me emails a couple times a year threatening to delete all my photos if I don't come back."-pr0b0ner

Arguably, All For The Best?...

"Yik Yak."

"It was a way to have conversations with people in the area anonymously (really popular on college campuses)."

"They made an update to create user profiles and pretty much everyone just stopped using it because anonymity was the whole point."- Fakjbf

episode 16 moe GIFGiphy

Chocolate Lovers Revolt!

"This is incredibly niche, but in Norway there used to be two providers of chocolate powder, the kind you mix with hot or cold milk to make hot chocolate or chocolate milk."

"They were O'Boy brand and Nesquik, equally loved and enjoyed a healthy fanbase 'rivalry'."

"O'Boy is a Swedish product sold in Scandinavia and the Baltics since the 50s, Nesquik is of course Nestlé brand and sold all over the world."

"Sometime in the 2010s Nesquik decided to change the formula of the choco powder."

"I imagine to save money."

"And for making hot chocolate the new recipe was fine."

"What Nestlé underestimated, however, is that most Scandinavians drink their choco powder cold to make chocolate milk."

"The new recipe had a different type of sugar in it that wouldn't dissolve in cold milk, leaving a crunchy powder in the milk."

"Norwegians outraged, Nesquik was deemed useless, nearly everyone in the Nesquik camp migrated to O'Boy, and Nestlé lost almost all its market share overnight."

"A few months later, Nesquik is gone from the shelves nearly everywhere, never to recover from the blunder."- -Yngin-

Tornados Filled With Sharks Are Not For Everyone...

"Sci-Fi Channel."

"At some point there was no sci-fi on it."- AlienBeingMe

Tara Reid Storm GIF by SYFYGiphy

Not Everyone Can Keep Up With The Times...

"RadioShack."

"They went from selling electronic components, little gadgets, and interesting tech bobbles to nerds to trying to sell expensive cell phone plans and sh*tty batteries to a different audience."

"We saw that the customers who came to RadioShack shifted from middle/upper-income engineers and tech geeks to lower income people in a six year period."

"Then we saw the geeks stop coming in at all because they would come in for some capacitor or breadboard, and the person there wouldn't know what that was."

"If it wasn't a phone, they didn't know."

"Even if it was a phone, they probably couldn't tell you anything about it."

"Old RadioShack employees were knowledgeable and well paid."

"New RadioShack employees didn't give a sh*t about technology."- 001235

Seems FittingThat Their Old Audience Is "History"...

"Anyone else remember when The History Channel was about history and not about aliens?"- rienjabura

Found Footage Video GIF by Eternal FamilyGiphy

There's A Reason They're Not So Well Known For Their Food...

"Every restaurant that opens in the UK goes through the cycle:"

"New and interesting food."

"Very different from most British food."

"Becomes very popular."

"Owners sell to a large company."

"Large company decides that being popular isn't enough, they want everybody to eat there."

"Make the food more British."

"Looming failure is hidden for a while because they attract new customers at exactly the rate they lose old customers."

"New customers have tried it, realize they can get that food anywhere, stop going."

"Chain closes and is replaced by a Greggs or Nandos, depending on the size of the location (not dependent on how far away the nearest Greggs or Nandos is."- skztr

Money Doesn't Solve Everything

"Quora."

"There were excellent groups with intelligent discussions."

"Then it became monetized and people submitted 100s of questions a day."

"'What time does the Walmart close in Boise?'" "

"'My 16 yr old came home with an A- so I took away their phone for 6 months'."- JanuarySoCold

Bored Sales GIF by EGiphy

Success can be a very dangerous thing.

As it can make you think about nothing but getting bigger, often resulting in your leaving people behind along the way.

A cautionary tale for young entrepreneurs.