this post was submitted on 18 Aug 2023
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What is the best skill you possess that makes you stand above the average person?

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[–] [email protected] 130 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Statistical modeling.

And yes, I am miffed about the use of the word “exponential” in this post’s title.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Same here; what're the odds?

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[–] [email protected] 113 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I got a PhD in philosophy. I have exponentially more experience applying for jobs and getting rejected than most people.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago

I was clearing out my Hotmail. I've a Msc in health psych. Well over 1k in reject emails. I may have a rival

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[–] [email protected] 99 points 1 year ago (10 children)

Math (I'm a graduate student). And "exponentially more experienced than the average" means nothing as exponential is a progression, not a comparison between two values.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What this person is trying to say is they are exponentially better at being technically correct.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Exponentially the best kind of correct by an order of magnitude.

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[–] [email protected] 75 points 1 year ago (2 children)

So you're asking people what they do for a living?

Doing something for 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week makes you a lot better at that thing than other people.

[–] [email protected] 29 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Actually doing something for 40 hours a week is truly remarkable. People waste so much time, me included.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Man I’m so good at sleeping though. I get at least 5 hours a night, so that’s 40 a week! Woohoo!

/s

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[–] [email protected] 49 points 1 year ago

Being comfortable enough with myself to answer this question honestly: nothing

[–] [email protected] 47 points 1 year ago (6 children)

By feel I can identify 20 lb, 24 lb, 28 lb, 65 lb cover, 110 lb cover, and 12 pt matte paper. I'm increasingly impressed by people's business cards as a result, as it is often much, much heavier than 12 pt matte.

Using comparison I can distinguish 80 lb semi-gloss cover, 100 lb semi-gloss cover, 8 pt gloss, 10 pt gloss, and 12 pt gloss. (But then again, most people could, given multiple choices rather than a free-response question.)

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (1 children)
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[–] [email protected] 46 points 1 year ago (14 children)

Since the Reddit blackout I decided to learn how to solve a Rubik's Cube. My best time for solving one so far is 82 seconds. I know it's no world record but the average person can't solve a Rubik's cube so I'm way more experienced.

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[–] [email protected] 43 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Socializing with cats, befriending them.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

I too consider myself better at this than the average person. I often find myself slow blinking at random cats in the street.

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[–] [email protected] 33 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (5 children)

Having gone through conscription military, I have leveled up some very important abilities.

Looking busy: I can find convincing ways to spend time without actually doing anything important.

Wasting time: When nobody is looking, I can find creative and fun ways to pass the time. (this ability is maxed out)

Also gained a few special perks.

Forest fun: Who needs movies, games or the internet when you have an axe and some wood. Even pine cones, rocks and sticks will be enough to keep you preoccupied in creative ways.

Day dreaming: Who needs the forest, when you can build countless universes in your mind.

Oh, and I did learn to shoot and keep my rifle in working order. I guess that’s nice too. Didn’t get to level that anywhere near as much, but that’s ok.

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[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I want to join in here too with the exceptionally good driving. I, like everyone else here, am totally a very much better driver than the average person on the road. Exponentially much better, even!

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Statistics.

That word does not mean what you think it means.

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[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Pole dancing! I’ve taught professionally for like 15 years.

Btw this instance is about to be exposed to amazing pole fitness content, prepare yourselves.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Maybe not better than an average person, but the last 10 years of my life taught me lots of handy life skills, like owning up to my mistakes, having more self esteem, showing confidence in tough situations, standing up for myself, having better people skills and to know when not to get involved and when to speak up.

Most of these are basic human skills, but the combination of these can make a huge difference. I landed jobs thanks to them, I made friends and removed toxic people from my life. I have less issues with adult responsibilities and in general I am less stressed.

Again maybe not exceptionally more experienced than an average person, but compared to my old self its a huge difference.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (5 children)

I am, without trying to sound arrogant, much better at cornering, roundabouts, and general driving than a large part of the population in Australia.

I can enter a roundabout, in a preselected gear, at appropriate revs and speed. Load up the suspension just right, so I'm released into my chosen exit, kissing the apex with a release of energy that feels so sweet, smooth and safe, that it's a beautiful part of my life.

All within safe thresholds, and always when I know it's safe. And the way others use roundabouts, it's always safer than the general population.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Not littering.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I have a lot of experience reconstructing whale skeletons for museums and such. I do it as a hobby with a friend of mine who is the marine mammals recovery coordinator for the state of North Carolina.

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[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Locks, lockpicking, and teaching English grammar.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Who are you and how did you get in here?

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[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Anyone in this thread could probably just cite their career.

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[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Cocktails. I'm purely an amateur home bartender (I work in software development) but I'm better at making cocktails than most paid bartenders in the city, including a number of the ones working at craft cocktail bars I've been to across the country. I make my own syrups, creams, infusions, carved ice, and dehydrated fruit. I've recently started using an iSi whipper to make foam toppers; beer foam for old fashioneds, tropical foam for Mai Tais. My avocado orgeat is awesome. Fat washing with coconut oil is easy and makes Campari and cachaça amazing. I've hosted many parties in the 15-28 person range, as well numerous smaller cocktail nights, so I have experience creating thematic menus and then prepping and serving the drinks all night.

I have a ton of knowledge about spirits in general, both breadth and depth. Most bartenders and even mixologists don't even know what baijiu is (let alone tried each aroma), know the difference between soju and shōchū, or why soju is rarely made with rice. My rum knowledge is where I've specialized and I can recommend multiple bottles of each type (Smuggler's Cove categories or Minimalist Tiki's) in varying price ranges, what cocktails they are best for, and the subtle differences between each bottle within its own category.

I'm a perfectly average programmer though.

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

I have decades of experience with improv storytelling. It's a niche thing, and normally I use it for tabletop games, but in a pinch I can make up campfire stories, ghost stories, or whatever else and use the slightest cues from the audience to suit what they enjoy.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Exponentially denotes a progression, a rate of change. You probably mean greatly or vastly

For me it would be authoring images-illustration, rendering, etc. I guess most people can answer with their job

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Don't forget to add "being pedantic" to your list!

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I am "exponentially" better at nothing in comparison to others. There's always this one kid, who will do whatever I do, far better than I can ever do.

[–] [email protected] 31 points 1 year ago (1 children)

But that one kid isn't the average person. Don't put yourself down.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

The best skill?

Im a good driver. Very good, in fact. Not at racing, i mean. But actually driving on public roads.being predictable, parking legally, following speed limits, using the turn signal before i actually turn, etc etc

It pains me to ride as a passenger now :(

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago (1 children)

How to handle multiple repeated panic attacks every day

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

I can mould the old shower soap in to the new shower soap like an absolute boss.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

Gamemastering rpgs. 20 years of experience and a good cross section of games played. Spent the last five years really trying to improve too.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

I could say job-related things or my hobbies, but Ima go with Google-fu. Maybe just search engine fu.

I know way too many 'first page people' when it comes to results. No fuckin' way. Learn how to dig. Do not take no for an answer from a search engine without trying a range of strategies to find what you're looking for.

OK, I'm lying. This is part of my job. I teach academic research, and I hear these people with two sources tell me there aren't enough sources for them to do a research paper on a given topic or that all these peer-reviewed journal articles say the same thing.

But it does extend into non-academic life. I was out of town, my older brother needed a U-Haul, drove 40 minutes to a place he knew, but there was a U-Haul less than 10 minutes away that he couldn't find.

I'm surrounded by this.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

This feels like a cheat answer, but as someone who has played for 25 years and organized events for 15, I’m likely much more knowledgeable about the rules of Magic: the Gathering than the “average person”. Not sure that I am necessarily exponentially better than the average player, but maybe I am now that so many people play digitally and don’t need to know the rules as much.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

Picked up soldering and small appliance repairing as a hobby couple months ago so I guess that

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

Diagnosis, repair, and operation of CNC lasers, both flat plate cutting lasers and tube lasers.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

I'm good at putting a needle inside people's veins.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Ability: Coordinate system rotation. I can move 3d objects around in my mind with ease and it is clear in group settings that most people are not good at this.

Knowledge: heat transfer. I've done years of theoretical study and more years of practical application of heat transfer.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (5 children)

I have two useless talents:

  • Highly developed sense of smell (sometimes a liability)
  • Ability to identify voice actors with high accuracy

I once identified the source of a minute gas leak in my basement, which had evaded the calibrated detection equipment of the utility company, so I guess I can't say it's completely useless.

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago

Surviving mental illness.

I used to be in around the top 1% of CSGO players though it took me 2000 hours so it's not much of an achievement lol.

Probably political science just by merit of being educated in it though I wouldn't say I am especially gifted in it as such.

I am not very good at anything lol, I just read a lot to make up for my natural stupidity. I like reading though.

[–] Barbarian 10 points 1 year ago

My humility.

Joking aside though, I'd like to think I'm pretty empathetic and understanding.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

Being myself, I'm pretty good at it.

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