We can't ace every quiz. Every once in awhile we're going to hit a wall.
The key is to try to not be so harsh to our psyche.
We all learn differently.
But give yourself a break if you can't master everything you try, even if other people find it easy.
RedditorMxchi27wanted to hear about what simple skills others have down pat, that some of us just can't quite get, so they asked:
"What’s a seemingly basic thing you can’t do?"
Math past Algebra.
So many seem brilliant at it.
I gave up.
And the guitar, so frustrating.
be regular...
"Eat a healthy amount at regular intervals." ~ 300show
"I've had that issue as well due to being homeless multiple times. There are periods where I'm doing well, and other periods where I'll eat everything offered to me because what if I'm homeless soon? Gotta pack on the weight in case I'm homeless again and can't eat. The last time I was homeless, I lost 60 pounds in a little over a month, and gained it right back in a little under a month." ~ Indysteeler
Waterworks
"Open my eyes underwater." ~ HolyAuraJr
"Every time I try, no matter if it is fresh water, sea water, or pool water, it burns. And it burns for days afterwards." ~ Galaxy_Ranger_Bob
"I used to have the same problem. Went to a different eye doctor (for a regular check up) and he took one look at my eyes and asked: do you have trouble watching TV in a dark room? Do your eyes burn when you touch them with your hands? When you're wearing eye make up? Turns out it's an allergic reaction and eye drops made it go away! Do you experience any other discomfort with your eyes?" ~ heythere30
Make a List
"Start things, complete things, finish a todo list." ~ RandomiseUsr0
"I learned this just the other day and I am trying it out. Don't think about doing the whole thing. Just do two minutes of it. Need to get dishes done? Don't look at the stack. Just unload the dishwasher/fill the sink with soapy water. Want to get into the routine of a morning run? Don't think about treading down the street. Just put on shorts/sweats and lace up your shoes."
"Need to go shovel snow? Don't think about the work involved. Just take two minutes to put on your coat, gloves and boots. If after you follow the two minute rule you still don't want to do it then don't. However, most of the time your brain kicks in and says to itself, Well, I made it this far, I guess I'll finish up. So far I'm actually getting things done, now if I can keep my ADHD brain from creating subversive techniques I might actually be able to create the habit." ~ Yup_Shes_Still_Mad
Lips Together
"Whistle." ~ LollipopDreamscape
"I can whistle, but I want to be able to do that really loud whistling." ~ Indysteeler
GiphyBreathing.
Relaxing.
Whistling.
So basically I'm bad at life.
Silence
"Make conversation, make friends." ~ Jedibri81
"I can respond to, but never initiate a conversation. If my boss and I are in the truck, and we're driving an hour to the job site, and he doesn't speak first, we're sitting in complete silence the entire time." ~ alpacamaster8675309
GiphyRise and Shine!
"Wake up easily in the mornings. It doesn't matter how much sleep I have, I always struggle to wake up."
"Edit: Wow, thank you all so much for the upvotes and kind words and advice. I'm going to try the Alarmy app, make sure I wake up in 90 minute intervals (I did this yearsss ago but stopped for some reason), may try one of those light alarms, and will have a drink of water as soon as I wake! I will try these for a few weeks and then consider a sleep test if they don't help. Gosh how much I LOVE Reddit. Thank you all so so much ❤️." ~ emzyyx
Rambled
"I don’t explain myself well so I sound like I’m rambling." ~ atleastistoletheshow
"Same. I think faster than I speak, so I get confused and lose my train of thought, often accompanied by slurred speech. I know concepts without thinking about them, but I can't explain them; I know exactly what I mean, but the words that come out are either irrelevant and/or often misconstrued. Organising thoughts is impossible."
"Doesn't help when I ought to explain something in my native language, but think in English – and vice versa. I know a word in one language and have a hard time finding an equivalent in the other. Does it surprise you if I tell you I talk with my hands a lot? Despite this, I've been a translator since 2012, huehuehue. But I have Google and dictionaries, so it's fine."
"Everyone gets bored and changes the subject or ignores me before I can finish, so I don't like speaking. It gets a lot better when I'm tipsy, though. Those who actually listen may catch the thread and finish my sentence for me, or say ‘oh, yeah, I understand what you mean’." ~ DolfK
A Dull R...
"I can’t roll my R’s." ~ BLOME69
"Same here. I feel like a bad Mexican. I can’t even pronounce my last name correctly because of it." ~ spangee85
"OK but that makes me feel a little better, I'm white but I'm trying to learn Spanish, my tutor (who is Latin American) says her own daughter can't roll their R's so it's not a big deal. I still wish I could learn how to do it tho 😭." ~ GeneralEl4
Bad GPS
"Read maps, I have no sense of direction so if you ask me where is -location-? I sometimes don't know how to tell you." ~ IWishToRewriteMine
GiphyDo they even make maps anymore?
I still struggle with GPS.
Look at me... a master at not much.
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People Describe The Most Basic Thing They've Ever Had To Explain To A Grown Adult
It's tough being a grown up.
Not only are you expected to have all the answers, you're also expected to be a master in all forms of everything, ever, in all of existence. A knowledge shortage can lead to feelings of inadequacy, as well as mockery.
Redditor, Steyn_03, wanted to know what you couldn't believe you had to break down when they asked:
"What is the most basic thing you've had to explain to an adult?"
As we get older, it can feel like technology slips further and further away from us. However, so long as you keep an open mind, willing to absorb the things you might have missed, then you'll be fine. Don't be like these people.
It Goes "One-Two"
"How to double-click a mouse. He didn't get it, despite repeated demonstrations. And I was supposed to teach this guy how to build a database. -.-"
Outcasted_introvert
"How did that interaction end?"
kipopadoo
"The chap in question retired. 😳"
Outcasted_introvert
Gotta Save Up Them Mega-Flop-Bytes For The Harsh Winter Months
"Turning off the router doesn't save WiFi"
Perxwxnkle
"I wonder if the digital generations of today will be as digitally handicapped when we get up in age and current technology has advanced to something that is almost unrecognizable to what we were brought up with."
DarthTheRaider
"I don't think it's the people that's the issue. If people resist learning the new tech, they become digitally handicapped. I know people in their 40s, 50s, and even late 60s who are perfectly okay with our tech and are not digitally handicapped. If you decide to learn new tech stuff as it grows and advances, you won't have this handicap."
SMGeet
Let's Go To The Blackboard
"When working retail: percentages."
"Our clearance was usually 50% off. Then at the end of the season it would be an additional 50% off. Our signage would normally say something about taking an additional 50% off of lowest sticker price. But then they'd see the small print on the sticker indicating it was already 50% off, and they'd come up to the register all in a tizzy."
"Like how dare we use deceptive business practices. If we honored our advertising this should be free because 50+50=100 and 100% off means free."
"I had to give way too many people basic math lessons in my nice customer service voice, all while they gave me the distrustful stink eye."
AhemExcuseMeSir
You Don't Recover From A Kid Burn
"I’m 14 and I had to teach my step mum how to use google, and she’s only 30, so she’s been around since google started"
HAIL-HOOTLER
Use Google To Ask Jeeves To Bing A Napster Song For Your
"My mom always presses the siri button, and as it is listening, she says, “Hey siri, google apple music play ______ by _____ in the album _____ featuring ____.” Or she’ll just list all the search engines she knows before asking siri to do something. I usually don’t say anything since she just ignores it, bur occasionally I’ll tell her she doesn’t need to say all that stuff. In case you don’t know, google isn’t a streaming platform."
New_Version2
Sometimes, skills slip through the cracks. Maybe your parents didn't teach you or maybe you forgot because it's been too long since you've done the skill in question. Either way, it's still a little funny when you forget how frying something works.
Still Don't Put Chicken On It
You have to cook the chicken all the way through."
"It's not steak, you can't have it "medium-rare"."
tbonemistake
"you could.. but it comes with salmonella"
purpleshirtbluepants
The Bunny Running Around The Tree Is Not The Only Way
"I had to explain to a coworker how to tie a trashbag so that it stayed taut around the rim of a trashcan. Legit didn't know how to tie the most basic knot."
Lowdridge
Where Do You Think The Name "Fry" Comes From?
"I have a friend who is not the brightest individual. We were hanging out at his place one night and had the munchies. He asked if I wanted some french fries, I said absolutely. Well 20 minutes later or so, he summoned me to his kitchen. He couldn't understand why the fries turned out a mushed mess."
"He had tried to "fry" them in boiling water, you know, like they do at fast food joints, lol. I had to explain to my dear friend that they aren't boiling the fries in water, its oil, you halfwit. That was 20 years ago and I still get a kick out of it."
1980pzx
Brush, Not Pick. Brush!
"not me but my friend."
"she is a dental assistant and had to explain to an 18 year old patient of hers that he needs to brush his teeth everyday with a toothbrush (he "brushed" his teeth once a day with a toothpick, yes, his gums were completely ripped and his teeth full of holes and caries). my friend had to go get a model and a toothbrush and show him how long and where to brush"
gryffingirl_
The Warm Air Gets Sucked Behind And, Ah, Forget It...
"Fans do not cool a room down."
"I argued with my warehouse manager because he had arranged some massive industrial fans to aim upward toward the roof, and outward over top of the employees."
"Because all that cool air would block the heat from the hot roof."
kek_provides_
Then there's everything else, the things that can't quite be categorized as a particular set of skills you need. Rather, these are the ones you'd hope you can pick up on through osmosis because asking someone about what "morning wood" is not a conversation you want to have.
Hire Me For The Right Reasons
"I’m a personal injury lawyer. I’ve had to explain to many potential clients that they need to be, ya know, INJURED to make a claim."
dcow12
Can't Quite Follow Directions
"Stock rotation. I have to do this (explaining) at least twice a week including to colleagues who have worked in store for over a decade."
Me - "You put the newest stock at the back of the shelf, and move the oldest stock to the front."
Colleague - "OK"
Colleague puts the new box at the front
Me - "..." Smacks head
TangerineCassidy
Do Your Research
"I have to explain marginal tax rates every year during tax season."
"It is shocking to see adults willingly turn down overtime and bonuses for fear of paying more taxes."
growingalittletestie
We Are Doomed To Repeat It
"That Jews can be German. It was maddening how hard it was for this person to understand."
timmytherigger
That's Not How Money Works
"Had to explain to my brother that he can't buy an 80k dollar car on his 12 dollars an hour job. Not even in payments, he wanted to save up the full amount. I literally had to sit down with him and do the math. It would've taken him 15 years to save up that money."
"Also it wasn't even for him he wanted to give it to his girlfriend for graduation lol he's 20 and she's 18. I told him bro just save that up for a house"
TheZamasu
"And this is how the 2008 housing crisis happened. People like this and banks that let them do it."
Midgetmunky13
Wow...
"Back in college, my girlfriend said, "I don't understand how you can find me so sexy first thing in the morning.'
"I asked, 'What do you mean?'
"'Well, whenever you wake up next to me, you're so... you know... down there...'"
"Apparently she had no idea what morning wood was, or that it had nothing to do with her."
captainmagictrousers
Don't feel bad about a gap in your knowledge. The problem with these people is they might not have been big enough to push their ego aside and ask for help.
There's always a chance to learn something you might have missed out on growing up.
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