Efficiency

None of this is expert advice. It's what people worked out for themselves, usually the hard way — what actually helped, and what they'd tell someone standing where you are. Take what fits and leave the rest.

How this was put together

If you only read a few

Visit amusement parks when there is a 60-70% chance of rain.
Casual visitors stay home while season pass holders still go.
- One approach that helped: this strategy works well if you have a season pass.
one person who lived it
Run 'shutdown -f -r -t 0' in Command Prompt to force a faster reboot without prompts.
Reboots are much faster this way
one person who lived it
Shop at grocery stores between 10 AM and 11 AM for empty aisles and fresh produce.
Stores are set up for the lunch rush but lack crowds before concerned shoppers arrive.
one person who lived it
Place crushable or fragile items at the end of the line so they are bagged last.
This helps prevent them from being crushed by heavier items placed earlier.
- One person noted that cashiers may still smash bread under produce regardless of placement.
one person who lived it
Spend short waiting periods, such as while a kettle boils, tidying the kitchen.
It makes overall kitchen cleanliness easier to maintain.
one person who lived it

waiting, time, people, setting21

Let recipients unbox and set up their new consoles themselves to preserve the excitement of the experience.

Prepare lunch at home to avoid waiting in line and ensure you can eat exactly when hungry.
It allows you to eat right at your desired time, such as 11:59, despite taking 15 minutes to prepare.
one person who lived it
Eat at the bar to avoid waiting for a table at popular restaurants.
There is often no wait for the bar.
one person who lived it
Turn on gaming consoles periodically to complete automatic updates, preventing long wait times when you want to play.
Spending half of your free time waiting for updates is painful; this ensures games are ready when you have time.
2 people, independently
Visit amusement parks on weekdays when most people are working or in school.
To avoid crowds.
one person who lived it

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Take all necessary items (clothes, towels) in one trip when going to the bathroom to change and bathe, rather than making multiple trips.
It saves time; one person reported saving 30 minutes.
one person who lived it
Avoid pre-opening presents for children who might view it as a violation of trust or tradition.
Children are likely not going to appreciate having their presents opened for them.
2 people, independently
Be methodical and take time to ensure you are thinking clearly rather than just rushing through actions.
This prevents errors in daily tasks, such as locking keys in a car.
one person who lived it
Choose spots with interesting features to stop at, making rest breaks feel organic rather than forced.
It allows the group to hang out and talk about what they are seeing naturally.
one person who lived it
Stay in the kitchen during short waits to perform useful tasks instead of leaving the room.
Leaving and returning wastes travel time that could be used for other chores.
one person who lived it
Avoid updating consoles intended for users who wish to hack them or use specific older firmware features.
Updating firmware makes certain hacks and modifications impossible.
- Only do this if the user has asked for a specific model number or indicated interest in hacking.
2 people, independently
Assign specific roles, such as photography, to people who dislike waiting so they feel engaged rather than idle.
It allows them to wait without feeling like they are waiting.
one person who lived it
Let recipients unbox and set up their new consoles themselves to preserve the excitement of the experience.
The anticipation and process of unpacking and setting up are considered part of the fun and joy.
6 people, independently
- Allow recipients to handle the initial setup and unboxing to preserve their excitement.1
Divide tasks into smaller sub-tasks so you can tick off each component, gaining a feeling of achievement that helps maintain momentum.
Ticking off components gives a feeling of achievement which helps maintain momentum.
one person who lived it
Decide whether to pre-set a console based on the child's personality and age.
Children vary in their preferences; some value immediate gratification while others enjoy the setup process.
2 people, independently
Recognize that some people enjoy the technical process of setting up electronics themselves.
Some people consider setting up their own devices a pleasure rather than a chore.
2 people, independently
Acknowledge that some people interpret the spirit of Christmas as greed and envy rather than family and joy.
one person who lived it
Use the time spent waiting for updates to engage in other family activities or rituals.
It allows you to do family stuff, such as setting up play space, getting snacks, or laughing together, while the device updates.
3 people, independently
Accept that waiting for updates is part of the true gaming experience and Christmas magic.
The sequence of unwrapping, gasping, and then updating is considered part of the holiday magic.
one person who lived it
When waiting for a slower companion to catch up, pause for an extra minute to let them rest and recover their breath before resuming movement.
4 people, independently
Distinguish between races and endurance contests in life to manage expectations and pacing.
one person who lived it

shortcuts, windows, press, create23

Press Windows + V to open clipboard history and paste previous items.
- You must enable clipboard history first by pressing Win + V once and clicking okay or accept.
- Copies do not persist between restarts unless you pin them in the clipboard manager.
10 people, independently
Learn your operating system's keyboard shortcuts to speed up your workflow.
It speeds up your workflow.
one person who lived it
Use a command line launcher like Launchy to streamline opening programs and files.
A command line launcher beats the start menu.
2 people, independently
Use an Ethernet cable for console updates instead of Wi-Fi to get faster download speeds.
Wired connections provide much faster speeds than standard Wi-Fi modems, which can be unreliable.
- One source notes that wired vs. wireless may not matter much for big updates.
2 people, independently

19 more on this

Add '/b' to the dir command to list only filenames, and '/s' to include subfolders.
/b stands for brief.
one person who lived it
Swipe left or right with four fingers on a touchpad to switch workspaces.
3 people, independently
Use short mnemonics like 'eml' for personal email and 'wml' for work email to reduce typing clicks.
Less clicks equals more productivity.
2 people, independently
Hold Shift while pressing Home or End to highlight text from your cursor back to the line's start or forward to its end.
4 people, independently
Create a dedicated folder on your phone for ticket screenshots to avoid scrolling through your gallery while in line.
It prevents frantic searching when you are already waiting.
one person who lived it
On mobile keyboards, type the first letter of a commonly used word (like your email address) to select it from suggestions.
Most decent mobile keyboards recognize the field type and suggest common words.
one person who lived it
Create text replacement shortcuts for frequent numeric codes, such as using '##' for your student ID number.
Makes life easier.
one person who lived it
Use shortcuts for standard moderation responses, such as rule reminders or warnings, when managing online groups on mobile.
It makes it easier to send default messages when you cannot copy and paste easily on mobile.
one person who lived it
If you adjust application volumes daily, pin the Volume Mixer to your taskbar for quick access.
It helps with frequent adjustments.
one person who lived it
Click the small rectangle at the far right of the taskbar, below the clock, to cut down on all open windows and show the desktop.
3 people, independently
Assign macro buttons on your mouse to volume up and down functions for quick adjustment.
One user found this amazing after repurposing gaming macros.
one person who lived it
Use 'DIR > print.txt /s /ad' to generate a list containing only folder names.
/AD captures only folder names, excluding individual files.
one person who lived it
Press Control+F to activate the find or search function within a page or document.
3 people, independently
Press Windows Key + Print Screen to automatically save a screenshot of your desktop to the Pictures > Saved Pictures folder.
Saves you from pasting into paint to get a screenshot
one person who lived it
Hold the Windows key and press the app's taskbar number repeatedly to cycle through its open instances.
3 people, independently
Use AutoHotkey to automate repetitive tasks, create custom hotkeys for standard responses, or auto-close annoying popups.
3 people, independently
Create shortcuts for emotes or ASCII art to insert them quickly into messages.
4 people, independently
Save profane words as contact names to trick autocorrect into correcting misspelled profanity correctly, or use the user dictionary to avoid cluttering contacts.
- Clutters your contacts list; using the user dictionary is an alternative.
4 people, independently
Assign distinct character sequences as shortcuts for different email addresses to switch accounts quickly.
5 people, independently

items, cashier, often, staff31

Stand several feet back from the baggage claim carousel and step forward only when your bag appears.

Test electronics on day one to identify dead-on-arrival units while they are still within the return window.
Dead on arrival units happen; stores often won't accept swaps if you wait weeks to test.
one person who lived it
Wipe sweat or frost off barcodes before handing items to the cashier.
It ensures the item scans successfully on the first try.
- Frost from frozen items affects scanning more than sweat does.
2 people, independently
Position yourself three-quarters of the way along or around the baggage claim carousel to avoid crowds.
Fewer people stand there, reducing the need to fight for space.
one person who lived it
- Stand several feet back from the baggage claim carousel and step forward only when your bag appears.3
While waiting in line, orient all item barcodes toward the scanner to speed up the cashier's scanning process.
It makes it easier for the cashier to scan items quickly without having to rotate them.
- Some cashiers claim they know where barcodes are and that this doesn't matter.
3 people, independently
- Turn barcodes towards the scanner while waiting in line.1

24 more on this

Bag your own groceries if permitted to save time and ensure proper separation of items like raw meat and produce.
It is faster and prevents cross-contamination.
- Not all locations allow self-bagging; some require cashiers to bag.
one person who lived it
Use alternative checkout registers in specialized departments like the garden center, electronics, or sporting goods at large retailers to bypass main lines.
These lanes are often shorter than the main registers.
- Does not work if the department is closed.
- Cannot be used for items that need to be weighed.
2 people, independently
Place chemicals together and keep them separate from food items on the conveyor belt.
It is prohibited to place chemicals like bleach next to food items like ground beef.
one person who lived it
Avoid lanes with people who appear eager to converse with the cashier.
Conversations can stop other tasks for minutes.
one person who lived it
Be polite and greet baggers.
They are often under-appreciated, and kindness may encourage them to take extra care with your groceries.
one person who lived it
Have your payment method, coupons, or cash ready before reaching the front of the line.
A grocery store cashier confirmed that delays in retrieving payment methods waste the most time between customers.
2 people, independently
- Have coupons sorted, payment method ready, and ID in hand (if buying alcohol) before reaching the front of the line.1
Ask shop floor staff for product locations instead of cashiers.
Cashiers are fixed at their tills and cannot move to help you, whereas floor staff can assist directly.
one person who lived it
Check expiration dates on both front and back items when buying produce, as rotation practices vary.
Some workers were lazy.
one person who lived it
Take photos of sale tags with prices to avoid price checks at checkout.
Having a photo record can save time if a price discrepancy arises, though some stores require UPC matching confirmation anyway.
- Stores may still require a price check to confirm matching UPC numbers, which a photo alone cannot provide.
one person who lived it
Unload heavy and durable groceries onto the conveyor belt first.
This prevents squishing lighter items and allows heavy items to be placed on the bottom of bags.
3 people, independently
Skip the language selection screen at self-checkout by scanning an item immediately.
It automatically selects English and saves time.
- This does not work everywhere; some places require manual language selection.
one person who lived it
Verbally inform the cashier about bulk items like cases of water kept in the bottom of your cart.
The cashier can usually ring in the code from memory.
one person who lived it
Help bag your own groceries if there is no dedicated bagger during busy times.
It speeds up the process and is appreciated by staff.
one person who lived it
Do not assume store staff will inspect the inside of sealed boxes when you return items.
Staff rarely check inside if the box appears unopened.
one person who lived it
Give unwanted items to the checker rather than leaving them on random shelves.
Staff can re-shelve them properly, which is important for perishable goods.
one person who lived it
Test gifted electronics by opening, inspecting, and powering them on before the big day to ensure they function.
This avoids tears, shattered hopes, and waiting in return lines if the item is defective or empty.
one person who lived it
Place disposable cameras on reception tables as an alternative to digital photo collection.
It yields candid shots and was reported to work well even decades after its initial use.
one person who lived it
Mute the automated voice announcements at self-checkout stations quickly after starting.
It stops the annoying voice from announcing each item.
one person who lived it
Remove hangers from clothing items before checkout unless you specifically ask to keep them.
Taking hangers off saves valuable time as cashiers are often required to remove them.
one person who lived it
Avoid checkout lines with parents and children.
Parents are often distracted, may repeat questions, and rarely have payment ready.
one person who lived it
Politely ask permission before bringing slightly more items than the maximum allowed at express checkout.
Politeness makes it more likely you will be allowed to proceed and avoids negative reactions from other customers.
one person who lived it
Verify that coupons apply to purchased items before handing them to the cashier.
Handing over a bundle of non-applicable coupons wastes everyone's time.
one person who lived it
Check store websites for opening hours before visiting to avoid finding the store closed.
one person who lived it
Repackage opened consoles gently, accepting that the cover might not fit perfectly.
Most systems are simple to repackage, and recipients often remove packaging anyway.
one person who lived it