The INSIDER Summary:

• We took a look at a Quora thread that asked, "what are some favorite McDonald's hacks?"
• The hacks are mostly from former or current employees.
• Examples include asking for "fresh" food, going between 10:30 and 11 a.m., ordering a side salad with meat, and ordering a McDouble with Mac Sauce instead of a Big Mac.

No one knows how to game a restaurant's menu better than that restaurant's employees.

We took a look at a Quora thread that asked current and former employees, "what are some favorite McDonald's hacks?" in order to get the most out of our next trip to McDonald's.

Keep scrolling for some expert advice. 

Get the same egg you get on the Egg McMuffin on any breakfast sandwich.

If you don't like the somewhat liquidy scrambled eggs that come on all of McDonald's breakfast sandwiches besides the Egg McMuffin, Quora user and McDonald's employee Chuck Chan says to ask for a "round egg" instead, which is what McDonald's calls the circular egg patty that comes on the McMuffin.

Ask for your food "fresh."

Chan says that if you're willing to wait a little longer for your order, you should ask for your burger or sandwich and fries "fresh." If you do so, the employee making your food will cook your meat fresh and wait to get your fries until a new batch has been made.

If you live in the UK, go between 12 and 2 p.m. or 5 and 7 p.m. and ask for a receipt.

According to Quora user Kamran Adnan, who has worked in McDonald's in London for over a year, you'll have a better experience at McDonald's throughout the UK if you go between the hours of 12 and 2 p.m. and  5 and 7 p.m., and ask for a receipt with your order.

Adnan says "gapbusters"— people who are paid by their companies to visit restaurants and rate them — make their visits during these times and always ask for a receipt, so that they can be reimbursed by their company. McDonald's employees are trained to treat these gapbusters well and provide them with fresh food, so that the restaurant will receive a good rating.

So if you act like you're a gapbuster, chances are your burger and fries will be a lot fresher than if you're just another regular diner.

Order a McDouble with Mac Sauce if you don't want to pay for a Big Mac.

Chan says his favorite menu hack is ordering the "poor man's Big Mac." In order to do so, ask for a McDouble without ketchup or mustard, but with Mac Sauce (the kind of sauce that comes on a Big Mac) and lettuce instead.

Although you won't get the middle bun found in the Big Mac, you'll still only pay around $1.29, as opposed to the $4 to $5 you would pay for a Big Mac.

McDonald's in Brazil serves rice and beans.

According to Quora user Juliano Oselame, McDonald's in Brazil has been offering their employees a meal of meat, rice, and beans since 2010, when employees asked for a healthier menu option than the regular burgers and sandwiches.

You won't see the rice and beans option on the menu, but if you ask for it, you'll get it. The meal comes with your choice of beef, chicken, or fish, as well as a piece of fruit and a side salad.

Go between 10:30 and 11 a.m.

If you can't decide whether you want breakfast or lunch, Quora user and McDonald's employee Matt Decuir suggests stopping by anytime from 10:30 to 11 a.m., because that's when the restaurant will be transitioning from breakfast to lunch. That means you'll have all the breakfast items to choose from, as well as all the other menu items.

As of right now, McDonald's locations only serve a few breakfast sandwiches all day long; other menu items are only available in the morning.

You can order any side salad with meat.

If you're not looking to order one of McDonald's full-sized salads, Quora user Justin Adams says you can instead order a side salad and add grilled chicken (or another kind of meat of your choice). You'll pay less than if you had ordered a regular salad, but you'll still be getting plenty of protein.

Order a Sausage McMuffin with an egg on the side instead of ordering a Sausage Egg McMuffin.

According to Quora user and former McDonald's employee Aaron Koshy, it's more cost effective to order a Sausage McMuffin with a round egg on the side than to order a Sausage Egg McMuffin, even though both of those orders consist of the same items.

Prices may vary depending on location, but Koshy says that generally a Sausage Egg McMuffin comes with a sausage patty, round egg, and cheese on an English muffin, and costs $2.99. A Sausage McMuffin, on the other hand, comes with just a sausage patty and cheese on an English muffin and costs $1.00. A side order of a round egg is only 99 cents, so by ordering a sausage McMuffin with a side egg you'll only be paying $1.99, which is a dollar less than a Sausage Egg McMuffin, even though it's the same order.

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Rome wasn't built in a day.

The hard truth is that there just aren't quick fixes for most things in life. It takes time to gain experience and build up an expertise in most fields.

That being said, other abilities are easy to pick up after just a few minutes, as this helpful Quora thread pointed out. These tricks can really save you a lot of time and hassle when it comes to life's little problems.

Here are some of the best responses from the thread, with a few tips of our own thrown in:

SEE ALSO: 4 ways to outsmart any multiple-choice test

1. Learn to change a tire

"It's very straightforward, but it's worth thinking about before you need it. Here's a video."—Ben Mordecai

2. Identify the freshest strawberries

"Smell them. If they smell like strawberries, buy them; they will taste divine. If they look gorgeous but have no smell, they will have no taste. Simple and foolproof."—Cyndi Perlman Fink 

3. ...and oranges

"Pick up the orange or grapefruit. If it feels light, it's not juicy and will taste rather woody. Go through the bin picking the ones that feel heaviest compared to oranges or grapefruits of a similar size. They'll be the tastiest ones."—Karen Opas

This post from Nela Canovic, productivity hacker, writer, and entrepreneur in Silicon Valley, originally appeared on Quora as an answer to the question, "How can I improve my morning routine?" 

Keep it simple, make it fun, and back it up with a nighttime routine that's easy to follow!

Here are 10 quick and easy tips for starting your day with more energy: 7 to practice in the morning and 3 to practice at night.

Tips to practice in the morning

1. Make it super simple by waking up just 15 minutes earlier

What? Why should you wake up earlier if you're already having problems waking up as it is? The biggest benefit is to give yourself a little extra buffer of time to adjust to the day. It's not that hard to do. If you usually wake up at 7 a.m., set your morning alarm to 6:45 a.m.

Keep this schedule for one week. If that works and you're feeling good about it, the following week set your alarm to another 15 minutes earlier, this time for 6:30 a.m. There's a lot you can do in that extra half hour you have, so why not use it?

2. Customize your alarm to boost energy and focus

Create an alarm that is right for you. Pick a ringtone that's unusual but not irritating or set your alarm to vibrate mode for a more subtle sound. Make a recording of your own voice saying a positive message, then save it as your alarm tone. Queue up some music that you find uplifting and energizing, and schedule it to play when you need to wake up.

3. Set a calm tone to the day with meditation

Researchers say that when we meditate early, we sleep better at night. Meditating can also help you deal better with the all those random thoughts that occupy you throughout the day (including anything that stresses you out as soon as you open your eyes) and that may contribute to your feeling rushed and overwhelmed. To get started, download the Headspace app and practice for 10 minutes; it's easy and even fun for absolute beginners.

4. Prep your workspace

Before starting your day, make sure you have everything ready for the work you'll need to complete. This applies to your computer, books, reference materials (bookmark them in your browser or write notes that you'll have handy on your desk), your daily plan (a checklist of tasks you need to complete), a bottle of water at your desk, an energy snack (a power bar, banana, or a fruit and nut mix).

5. Do a super-short workout

Pick a super-short, targeted workout to help your body wake up and prepare for the day ahead. The benefit? You're more likely to keep the habit if it's something more manageable (as opposed to promising yourself you'll hit the gym for two hours in the afternoon, which is harder to do).

Here are some ideas for a 10–15 minute wake-up session: a morning yoga routine, a 15 minute bootcamp session, or a set of sun salutation poses.

6. Eat some brain food

Don't work on an empty stomach. Have a small breakfast that will fill you up, give you energy, and hopefully improve your brain's cognitive function. Here are three breakfast ideas:

• Oatmeal mixed with 1 tablespoon flaxseeds, 1 teaspoon peanut butter, sliced banana or other fresh fruit, and some walnuts or almonds on top.
• A parfait that consists of layering 1/2 cup of yogurt, 1 tablespoon granola, 1 cup fresh fruit (sliced or diced), and a spoonful of nuts such as walnuts and almonds. Almonds can be beneficial for increased attention, as well as restoring memory.
• Eggs are a powerful mix of B vitamins, antioxidants, and (sometimes) omega-3 fatty acids. Cook, scramble, or make them into an omelette with some spinach and mushrooms.

7. Become the master of your time

When you're ready to start working, use a timer to divide up your work into manageable increments to allow your brain to focus in a more targeted and effective way. Try the Pomodoro technique, which consists of 25 minute blocks of time, followed by five minute breaks.

When you're done with one segment, step away from your desk and give your brain a chance to rest: Go outside for a short walk, grab a cup of coffee or tea, have a snack to increase your energy levels.

Tips to practice at night

8. Set a bedtime alarm on your phone to go off 30 minutes before you need to sleep 

This will signal to you that you need to finish up any activities you're working on. Be sure to have a bedtime alarm go off every day of the week, including weekends.

9. Get away from electronics(such as your computer and TV) in the hour before bedtime

Instead, listen to a podcast on a topic you find interesting or queue up some relaxing music and listen with your eyes closed as you're sitting on the couch. Alternatively, read a book to stimulate your imagination.

10. Have a cupof herbal tea(with no caffeine)

Or try some warm milk with honey or a magnesium supplement around the time your alarm goes off. These warm drinks can help you feel sleepy and more relaxed.

Follow Nela Canovic on her Twitter and her blog.

SEE ALSO: 7 morning rituals that are hard to adopt but will pay off forever

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About a year ago, I went to a networking night for media professionals, hosted by my alma mater.

I said hello to a few people I recognized, sat through the presentations without asking any questions, and as soon as they were over, made a beeline for the door.

Rest assured, that's not the way I normally behave at networking events. Normally, I don't go to those events at all.

Judging by the number of Quora and Reddit threads on the topic, it seems like I'm in good company — a lot of people think networking is awkward, and/or gross, and/or generally useless.

But the key, according to the people who've posted on these threads, is finding a way to make networking work for you.

If you don't relish the idea of handing out business cards, or having 60-second conversations with 60 different people in a single night, or asking for favors outright, you don't have to. There are other ways to find jobs and learn more about your industry.

Below, we've rounded up some of the best networking advice out there — advice that few people are quite skilled or confident enough to be able to ignore.

1. Leverage your existing connections

Networking tends to be associated with meeting new people. But that's not always the most effective strategy.

On Quora, Nelson Wang writes: "Realize that some of your best connections are existing ones. Reconnecting with your existing network is incredibly powerful because you already have a relationship with them."

As Steve Cadigan, former VP of Talent at LinkedIn, told Business Insider's Aine Cain, cultivating your current connections is often the best approach.

"It could be your tennis coach. It could be your history professor. It could be your senior thesis adviser. It could be so many people," he said. It could even be your college classmates — so keep in touch with them.

"You've got to start somewhere."

2. You can start small

Cut yourself some slack. Redditor cjerrells writes:

"Don't feel like you should be an amazing networker overnight.

"Instead, attend your next event saying ‘I'm going to introduce myself to *one** person'*. Then, the one after, you aim for two."

3. Offer to help people

"Find ways to add value to others without expecting anything in return," Mike Fishbein writes on Quora. "When you do something for someone else that helps them in some way, they naturally want to reciprocate."

Scientists call it the "rule for reciprocation." As psychologist Robert Cialdini writes in his book "Pre-Suasion,""People say yes to those they owe." So if you want someone's help, consider doing something useful for them first — like introducing them via email to a potential business partner.

Dave Kerpen, founder and CEO of social-media software company Likeable Local, says the best question to ask when you meet an influential person is, "How can I help you?"

Obviously, you should really be in a position to assist the person. But even if they don't take you up on your offer, they'll probably feel warmer to you for having asked.

4. Talk about something other than work

Maybe you don't feel comfortable asking directly how you can help your new acquaintances. That's fine.

Still, "do have a good selling point about yourself, like a relatively unusual hobby or something, to talk about," Shweta Karwa writes on Quora.

Maybe you have a side gig selling artwork on Etsy, or maybe you volunteer at an elementary school. It's probably not something your conversation partner does, or even knows much about.

"It really makes for good conversations," Karwa writes. "You are probably adding value to their knowledge base, and it might be something they might get interested in. Win-win on both sides."

5. Ask a lot of questions

That's a suggestion from Micha Kaufman on Quora.

He writes: "People love talking about themselves. Asking lots of questions both implies that you're very interested in them and gives you crucial information."

Dale Carnegie said much the same thing back in his 1936 bestseller, "How to Win Friends and Influence People." One of his secrets to making people like you is simply to listen and encourage other people to talk about themselves.

It takes some of the pressure off you, too — instead of trying to describe your job as the most exciting thing in the world, you can talk in terms of the other person's interests and make them feel important.

6. Review what is — and isn't — working

On Reddit, dankness recommends asking your conversation partner a lot of questions — and not stopping there.

He writes:

"Review your questions. What worked? What didn't? Did you find a question that lead [sic] you into awkward silences? Did you find that some people were able to relate better to other questions?

"If you have to do a LOT of these networking events, keep 1 or 2 questions and change a few others up. Again, hone this craft and keep trying new things."

The same strategy applies to networking more generally. Are you getting responses to cold emails? Are people freaked out when you ask them right away what their spirit animal is? Is the bright orange tie a good conversation piece?

Approach the whole thing analytically and you'll have a better shot at success in the future.

New York Times journalist Charles Duhigg used a similar strategy when he started as the Times' senior editor of live journalism, responsible for coordinating conferences.

He didn't particularly like schmoozing and experimented with different goals — first, having a 20-minute conversation with one person, next having multiple conversations in quick succession, and finally, talking to four people in the first 10 minutes and then going back to the person he liked most.

"Gamify" your networking experience and set a concrete objective for yourself.

7. Follow up regularly

"Follow-up isn't supposed to mean a one-time email that reads 'Connecting - Me from XYZ'," Utkarsh Sinha writes on Quora. "Building a network is for [a] lifetime."

He recommends sending the occasional email in which you share an article that's relevant to the person's interests, for example. You can even ask them for advice on a topic they're knowledgeable about and you're not.

The idea is to keep the conversation going.

8. Network all the time

You might not meet your future business partner on your commute home — but talking to a fellow passenger is definitely good practice for more formal networking events.

Then again, they might become your future business partner, after all.

Greg Muender writes on Quora:

"Stop thinking of 'networking' as [its] own independent entity. Life is networking. 

"Some of the most meaningful relationships, friendships, and partnerships I have ever made have started with an encounter on a plane, at the dog park, on the subway, etc. 

"Don't [confine] networking into a binary thing where you are either in 'networking' mode or you are not. Introduce yourself to the guy sitting next to you on the bench.  Say 'hi' to your neighbor."

SEE ALSO: This brilliant technique is less gross than networking and will get you actual experience and exposure

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If, like many people, you stumble out of college in your early 20s, unsure of what to do next, you can be forgiven for needing a few years to get your bearings.

The transition from school to work (or more work), can take a bit of getting used to. And it can also be a fun time to try things and toss them away, to not worry so much about what's coming down the road.

But by 24, you have unquestionably entered adulthood, and it's good to start taking stock of what things you want to make sure you get a head start on. These choices could influence the rest of your life.

To help out, a bunch of people chimed in on a Quora thread discussing the skills every 24 year old should to learn. We narrowed it down to the top 11 pieces of advice.

Here they are:

Eugene Kim contributed to an earlier version of this story.

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Become a master salesperson of yourself.

"Sales is the basis of all business success. You are always selling, even if your role does not include sales in the job description. You sell during marketing activities, team meetings, customer service, product management, conferences, business development, engineering, user experience and more. A solid foundation in how to sell can give you a wide advantage over your colleagues and competitors."— Anonymous

Get out of your comfort zone.

"Get real world experience. Start businesses, talk to people, ask a pretty girl out, go skydiving, become good at small talk, and for the love of god don't take yourself too seriously."— Christian Pretorius

Get very good at one thing.

"Your job, photoshop, singing, dancing, whistling, so that if the worst happens, and you get kicked out of your job and house and friends are done using you, you can still earn your livelihood by freelancing... (even whistling will do — you can roam on roads asking couples to dedicate songs to each other and they will pay you – tried and tested)."— Rohit Mishra

The INSIDER Summary:

• As they smile at you and welcome you aboard, flight attendants are actually assessing whether you'll be a safety concern on the flight.
• They're also checking you out to see whether you might be an asset in the case of an emergency.
• From whether you're drunk to how buff you are, flight attendants revealed on Quora what they're looking for when passengers board.

While they may be checking out your outfit to see whether you're worthy of an upgrade, or scoping out your luggage to see whether you're trying to smuggle on a too-big carry-on, first and foremost flight attendants are trained to keep passengers safe, and will make certain snap-judgments to ensure that safety.

A Quora thread that asks "What do flight attendants notice about passengers as they board the plane?" reveals exactly what they're looking for.

According to Janice Bridger, a flight attendant of 27 years, "Air travel is fraught with inherent danger [...] — one must be constantly alert and aware of one's situation. So when I greet people, you better believe that I'm always very aware of each passenger who steps through the door of the aircraft."

Keep scrolling to see what they're looking for.

They check to see whether you're inebriated

According to Sjaak Schulteis, who was a cabin attendant for Lufthansa for 30 years, drunk passengers can be refused entry aboard the aircraft.

"If a guest coming aboard is drunk or intoxicated by any drug, it can happen that he or she is not allowed to enter the plane. [...] The first impression is often the right one, and we do refuse passengers who might be a danger for the safety of that flight. So far I have refused four passengers and was luckily backed up by the purser and captain. All of these were drunken passengers."

Bridger agrees. "If someone appears to be intoxicated, we don't want them on the plane," she says. "The potential for future problems is too great."

Flight attendant Amar Rama says, "In the event we may need to evacuate the aircraft, the goal is to do so in 90 seconds, and I don't want to unnecessarily risk my life or the life of others because a drunk or high person is being uncooperative." 

They check to see if you're buff

"If I see someone who is muscular, powerful, strong, physically fit, I memorize his/her face and make a mental note of where they are sitting," says Bridger.

"I consider this person a resource for me. In the event of an attack on the flight or on me, these are my 'go-to' people. If a situation looks like it could develop, I'll privately and discreetly ask one of these people if they would be willing to help us if necessary. Help might involve subduing or restraining an unruly passenger. We hope it never happens, but we will prepare just in case it does."

They check to see whether you might be an airline employee

While fellow flight attendants often out themselves by bringing chocolates, Bridger says that she tries to "learn if we have any passengers who are airline employees, particularly crew members who have been trained in the in-flight procedures."

She says "They've been trained in what to do in an emergency, whether medical, mechanical, etc. They know how to handle the situations as well as I, and are trained to become an instant 'team member,' fitting right in immediately if needed. They are an invaluable resource for me, and I like to know who they are and where they're sitting."

They check to see if you're sick

Myriam Mimi, a flight attendant at Condor since 1994, says, "I check if they are drunk, drugged, sick, angry or afraid. That is extremely important as if I have the possibility to avoid any kind of troubles over the Atlantic, then I address it on ground. I say hello, welcome on board… and listen to how they respond."

According to Bridger, "I've had passengers board who look pasty and pale, deathly ill. We removed them; nobody wants their flu germs!" 

Rama agrees. "We are in an enclosed space, therefore if you're sick, it's not right to pass it on to others."

She adds that anyone would prefer serious medical issues to occur on the ground, rather than in the air. "I once saw a woman at the gate have a heart attack — I was so thankful it happened on the ground and not while we were in flight. Flight attendants are all trained in CPR, Automated External Defibrillators, basic first aid emergencies, but we cannot diagnose you nor have the expertise, experience or treatment as doctor."

They check to see if you're scared or anxious

Bridger says flight attendants keep an eye out for anyone who might be afraid of flying, "and need a word of comfort and encouragement."

They check for disabilities

According to Bridger, "I watch for disabilities that may disqualify someone from sitting in the exit row.  They need to be able to physically lift a heavy hatch (up to 60 lbs) or open a heavy door (several hundred pounds). "

Rama says that they check for special needs to see whether passengers might "require extra assistance during an emergency. This way, if anything were to happen, I want to make sure they are not left behind."

They check to see if you're trying to do anything illegal

"I've had people try to smuggle pets in their purses or handbags, bottles of booze in their briefcases (booze is allowed as long as it stays capped. You just can't drink your own liquor on the plane)," says Bridger. "So yes, I need to be vigilant and aware, all behind my 'greeting face' of smile and pleasant, comforting welcome!"

She adds "when you consider that I have approximately 3-4 seconds to make that passenger feel welcomed and comfortable, and then also assess them for all of the potential that they bring with them onto the plane... well, it can require a lot of focus."

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It's easier to be an annoying conversationalist than it is to be a skilled one.

Who wants to listen to the other person when you could instead talk endlessly about yourself, or pretend you're listening when you're really scrolling through your Facebook newsfeed?

Over on Quora and Reddit, users are having an ongoing vent session, sharing the conversation behaviors they find most irksome.

Below, we've rounded up some of the most cringe-worthy — so you know exactly what to avoid in your next conversation.

1. Looking at your phone

Heera R Nair writes on Quora:

"Basic courtesies people! Someone is trying to tell you something they are passionate about or how their day went and they chose you because they like you; the least you could do is give them your undivided attention.

"Your phone and the memes aren't going anywhere. It can wait."

Indeed, a 2015 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center found that 89% of cell phone owners said they used their phone during the last social activity they attended.

At the same time, 82% of adults said that, when people use their phones in social settings, it can hurt the conversation.

2. Trying to one-up the other person

On Quora, Eric Nyaga writes:

"If someone shares with you an experience he has had, never counter it with your own or that of someone you know.

"E.g. If someone tells of a promotion at work then you also tell them you've been made an executive director in such and such organization. Many people find it annoying but won't tell you."

3. Constantly interrupting the other person

"Probably all of us know someone who does that,"Peter T Mayer writes on Quora, "and it is really, really annoying."

Give the other person the space to share freely.

4. Talking to someone while they're wearing headphones

That's according to Quora user Indu KS, who adds that when someone takes out just one earbud in order to hear what you're saying, "it is a sign that they aren't really interested in a small talk or any kind of human interaction.

At least not from you, and at least not at the moment.

5. Relating everything back to your own experience

So says Redditor DeathHaze420, adding:

"I understand that the general flow of a conversation is back and forth. But I hate people who let you tell half a story before relating some [minuscule] detail back to them."

The Redditor is onto something — as Dale Carnegie wrote in his 1936 bestseller, "How to Win Friends and Influence People," the secret to making people like you is simply to listen and encourage other people to talk about themselves.

6. Voicing an opinion on everything

An anonymous Redditor writes: "The less they know, the more their opinion is specific, the more they feel entitled to shout it at the world's face."

This doesn't mean you have to stay completely neutral — it's helpful to share your thoughts and feelings on topics you care about. But you'll wind up alienating the other person if you feel the need to feign passion about every single issue that comes up.

7. Name-dropping

As an anonymous Redditor says, "It's super annoying because I know they're trying to impress people and make themselves sound way more important than they are."

In fact, a recent study suggests that namedropping in an attempt to wow your audience generally backfires— you wind up looking less competent and less likable.

8. Using unnecessarily fancy language

"I hate when people use really big words to sound smarter than they actually are,"AdinBacon writes on Reddit. "Especially when they use the words incorrectly. It makes me beleaguered."

Research backs up the Redditor's point: People who use simpler language are perceived as more intelligent.

SEE ALSO: 7 behaviors of people who are easy to talk to

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Below we are republishing an anecdote from Ellen Vrana, one of Quora's top writers and a former White House intern, about an experience she had with Hillary Clinton while Clinton was the first lady.

I was in college, 1999. I had a summer internship at the Clinton White House. I loved government and wanted to get into it.

I worked in a building within walking distance to the White House. You didn't need a badge to get into my building. Or an ID. In fact, all you needed were hands to open the door.

My job was to listen to speeches and type them up. The technical word is "transcribe." I transcribed the heck out of quite a few speeches. I also did "copying,""collating," and occasional "binder clipping." I could see the White House from our building.

Funny enough, my boss's name was also Ellen. This is important.

One day I was covering for Boss Ellen's assistant who was out with the flu, playing hooky, or just dead — I cannot remember. I got a break from the copier (and it got a break from me). Promoted! I was scared.

It was going fine, relatively fine, when Boss Ellen got a phone call on her line. I answered it for her outside her office.

Me: "Hello, Ellen's Office."

On the phone: "Hey Ellen, it's Hillary. What do you think about … "

The first lady was calling me! She knows my name! She wants to know what I think!

Me: "HOLY SH--; IT'S YOU!!!"

I just swore at the first lady of the United States!

[Panics. Slams phone.]

I just hung up on the first lady of the United States.

Me: "FUUUUUUUUUUUU--K!"

It is as bad as it sounds.

Overwhelmed by the awesomeness of talking to the first lady, thinking she meant me directly when she said "Ellen," I got verbal diarrhea and swore at her. Then, in shock, I slammed down the phone, thinking that would undo everything. Realizing that I had done that, I then yelled out an even worse obscenity to the entire office.

The rest happened pretty quickly:

My boss called out, "What is going on out there!?"

The first lady's aide called back immediately, and I apologized. She ignored me and said, "Put us through, please."

I put the call through.

My boss never mentioned it to me. I was too embarrassed to look at her again. I went back to the copier. My old friend.I never did meet Hillary Clinton in person.

Quora is the best answer to any question. Ask a question, get a great answer. Learn from experts and get insider knowledge. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.

SEE ALSO: Hillary Clinton Has Always Wanted The White House For Herself

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There's nothing inherently terrible about turning 30, for all its bad press. You can still be fun and adventurous and spontaneous.

So if you haven't accomplished everything on the list below by the time you hit the big 3-0, don't panic.

But let's be real: The older you get, the more likely it is that you'll have met The One, started a family, bought your own place, and moved into a management role at your company. Meaning there will be less opportunity to do things like run a Tough Mudder. Again, it won't be impossible — just harder.

To help you figure out how to best take advantage of your 20s, we checked out a bunchofQuorathreads and found some potentially life-changing experiences to put on your bucket list. 

Read on, get inspired, and most importantly, start checking things off.

1. Living in a big city

Quora user Dylin Redling says he moved to Manhattan when he was 24 and then to San Francisco when he was 26. "They were the two best moves I ever made," he says. "I highly recommend living in a city with a lot of diversity where you can meet people from all over the world."

If you've never made a move like that before, we've got you covered with roundups of everything you need to know before moving to New York City and San Francisco.

2. Challenging yourself physically

"While you're young, train for and complete a marathon, a Tough Mudder, a triathlon, or something similar,"Redling says. "It'll help you physically and mentally to push through boundaries and go for goals."

As Bernie Michalik writes on 99U, training for a marathon teaches you some key life lessons, like the importance of tracking your efforts and results as you’re working toward a goal.

These skills will help pave the way for your personal and professional success down the line.

3. Learning to meditate

Redling recommends starting a meditation practice as a way to manage stress. He writes:

"You're going to experience A LOT of stress over your lifetime, so it's best to learn how to effectively deal with it as soon as possible. One of, if not, the best ways is through meditation. Take a class, read a book, or do some research on the basics, and make it part of your life."

You might want to explore mindfulness meditation, which involves focusing on the intake and outtake of breath.

If you find this type of meditation helps you stay calm and focused, it’s a practice you can use whenever and wherever.

4. Online dating

If you're in your 20s and single, there's little harm in creating a profile on OKCupid, Tinder, or any of the dating sites out there.

As Elarie Mashi writes, "There's nothing to lose if you try, [but] who knows what you might gain?" In other words, you might be momentarily embarrassed about logging on, but you could potentially find your soulmate.

Up your chances of finding that person by setting up your profile according to science. That means you shouldn't post revealing photos and you should describe both your own personality and what you're looking for in an ideal partner.

5. Falling in love

Becoming totally enamored with someone is intimidating — what if your feelings are unrequited? What if the relationship doesn’t work out in the long run?

Let yourself fall for them anyway.

"Any number of breakups or separations cannot take away the joy and the experience of being in love,"writes Mragank Yadav. "It’s all worth it."

6. Failing

Yadav says it’s important that 20-somethings learn how to fail, and more importantly, how to get back up again: "Failing comes naturally. Rising up again is something that needs to be [inculcated]."

Take a tip from now super-successful figures, like Paul Allen and Oprah Winfrey, all of whom learned from multiple professional failures.

7. Traveling alone

Now's the time to pack up and head somewhere solo, especially if you don't yet have kids or a mortgage. 

"It will prove to be one of the most useful tool[s] in later stages of life to clear your mind, get away from stuff, or just to see the world for what it truly is,"Yadav says.

Ready to go? We put together a list of the 30 best places to travel alone, including Costa Rica, where you can stroll through the Cloud Forest, and the Greek Isles, where you can idle on the beach.

8. Starting a business

George Everitt recommends devoting one year in your 20s to pursuing a business idea. "It will probably fail,"he writes, "but you will learn so much more than if you had taken that time in a corporate job."

And don’t worry too much about roadblocks, like not having a business degree and not wanting to invest thousands of dollars. Danny Marguiles launched an online course without an MBA and with just $100. Later that year, he was earning $30,000 a month.

9. Learning to code

"Computers are here to stay,"Everitt says, "and learning at least one programming language helps you understand so much about how the modern world works."

Pro tip: These eight in-demand programming languages are the ones to have on your resume in 2016. 

10. Starting a blog

Josh Fraser says writing is one of the most important and underrated life skills. You can hone that skill by starting a blog — about food, sports, relationships, or simply being a 20-something.

"As with most things," Fraser says, "the best way to improve is to just start doing it."

11. Learning a foreign language

"You get a really good edge in some countries of the world if you know the native languages,"writes Sankalpa Patil. "I would suggest either of German, French, Japanese, Russian."

Whatever tongue you try to master, it could be easier than you think. Take a tip from Gabriel Wyner, who achieved fluency in four languages in a few years through the use of strategies like spaced repetition. Or, you could use the free Google Chrome extension that replicates the experience of language immersion by translating random words from whatever you're reading to the foreign language.

12. Rocking out at a concert by your favorite band

That's a tip from Emily Hunt. The tickets might be pricey, but certain artists might not be touring as often in years to come, so take advantage of their popularity now.

13. Taking a cooking class

Have you ever truly figured out how to cook?"asks Sachin Shubham.

As in, maybe you can feed yourself with spaghetti and omelets, but what would you serve at a fancy dinner party? Sign up for a course and learn at least one dish so you can impress guests with your culinary expertise.

14. Learning how to file your taxes

Ajay Goel says it's one of the most important things to do in your 20s.

Yes, it's scary. But just think how proud you'll be knowing that you handled all the paperwork (or virtual paperwork) on your own.

If you're clueless about where to begin, consider taking a course that will teach you the basics of filing a tax return.

15. Talking to a stranger

"It's scary, exhilarating and a good way to think on your feet,"writes Deepak Shukla.

So strike up a conversation with your local barista or a fellow passenger on your commute — science suggests it will make you both happier.

SEE ALSO: 10 things you'll regret doing in your 20s

Join the conversation about this story »

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This post from Nicole Gravagna, president of NeuroEQ, originally appeared on Quora as an answer to the question, "What are key mistakes people make when trying to actively develop their career?" 

The biggest mistake people make when they actively try to develop their career is to focus on a developing a career path for themselves to follow.

Why career paths are a mistake

A career path is a described as a series of jobs or roles that you can take to develop your career. The goal is generally to achieve higher paying jobs each time you take a new role. However, you don't have control over the jobs that are available to you at each point in your career.

What happens when you are ready for the next step in your path, and no one is hiring for that role? You get stuck. What happens when your chosen career path becomes obsolete because of changes in technology advancement? You become obsolete too.

Career paths are outdated

We live in a changing world. You can't predict what jobs will be available in ten years. How can you plan a career path to get a job that is completely invisible to you?

For the last few generations, developing a career path was good advice. Unfortunately, now it's outdated advice. Students graduating in 2020 will enter a work world that we can't predict today (and it's already 2017). Self-driving cars. Massive automation in retail. Manufacturing and logistics with robotics. We simply can't know what the future holds. How can you plan a path when you don't know where you are going?

Plan to navigate off the path

It can be helpful to imagine a career path as an actual path over real landscape so you can get an idea of how career development has to change. In the past, you could look at a map, plan out your waypoints and goals. You could even plan for arrival times.

On a real path, you might look at your watch and think, “we are moving slower than we planned, we better walk faster so we can get to the end of this hike before the sun goes down.”

Imagine the current career landscape to be one without a visible path. Technology has created fast growing plants that change the landscape while you walk. A path might have been visible when you started, but it's overgrown with vegetation now, and it's impractical to try to follow old paths, now gone. You don't know where your goal is and you definitely don't know how to get there.

New ways of planning goals

Goals are still your waypoints. Except we have to adopt new methods of goal setting. Goals must be independent of the landscape since the landscape is rapidly changing. Instead of a goal like, “Get promoted to manager in my company by the time I'm 32,” goals are more like, “Learn and apply a new skill set in a professional setting by the time I'm 32.”

The best career development skill you can master is that of achievable goal setting.

• Choose goals that are within your control. “Get promoted” is not within your control. “Learn and apply knowledge” is within your control.
• Avoid artificially limiting the circumstances under which your goal can be achieved. “Manager in my company” limits your achievement to a specific company. “In a professional setting” allows you to achieve your goal in any company.
• Time frames are still important. Although the landscape is rapidly shifting, time has not changed. Make sure you put a deadline on your goals so that you know when it's time to hurry up.

SEE ALSO: 19 highly successful people who prove it's never too late to change careers

Join the conversation about this story »

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Just about everyone knows that you should never text and drive, and that you should stop, drop, and roll if you catch on fire.

But life can also throw situations at us that we don't have a quick, handy response for.

Commenters in a recent Quora thread about life-saving facts offered their best tips, which are easy to remember and could have a huge effect if you ever find yourself in a dangerous situation.

You might want to save these for later.

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Your brain can't handle walking and using your phone at the same time — so look up.

Murali Krishnan says walking and using your phone both demand large amounts of cognitive effort.

As a result, you can't fully focus on both at the same time in the same way you can with walking and gum-chewing, for instance. You could suffer "inattention blindness," where you may see an object but not process that it's a car speeding toward you, Krishnan says.

Eliminate your car's blind spots by adjusting your mirrors properly.

Blind spots aren't inevitable in all vehicles, says Kristen Rush.

By adjusting your mirrors so that you barely see the edges of your own car, you can effectively eliminate the blind spots on the sides of the vehicle, she says. The rear-view mirror should be able to locate any car behind yours. It's worth the few seconds it takes to adjust these when you get in the driver's seat.

Heat transfers faster through liquid than gas, so keep warm by staying dry.

There's a connection between being wet and getting cold, says engineer Ian Lavoie.

To ensure your body temperature doesn't fall too quickly in cold environments, invest in clothes made of wool instead of cotton — they'll absorb more moisture so that dampness doesn't linger on your skin. And, of course, do your best to stay dry.

The INSIDER Summary:

• Losing weight can be tough without the right mindset.
• A recent Quora thread offers advice for psychological ways to lose weight and keep it off in the long-term.
• Tips include thinking of exercise as a fun activity and focusing on sleep, among other great mind hacks.

Losing weight can be challenging, especially if you don't have the right mindset to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Thankfully, a recent Quora thread lists helpful advice for people who want to train their minds to help them lose weight in the long-term, rather than wasting energy on quick, short-term fixes.

Here are nine ways to change your outlook that can help you lose weight healthily.

Revisit what you know about weight loss.

Quora user Wilfredo Thomas argues that understanding weight loss in the form of energy balance is the first key to achieving one's ideal body.

"Energy balance is the science way of saying calories in versus calories out," he writes. "Your body needs a certain amount of calories to maintain its current body weight."

Once you understand energy balance, you might feel less tempted to eat more than you really need.

Steer clear of opaque food containers.

Neil O'Nova, author of the book, "7-Minute Skinny Jeans," advises against eating out of food containers, boxes, and bags that aren't clear.

"Our brains are highly visual. We take visual cues as to how much food we’ve eaten to help us know when we should stop,"O'Nova writes. "But when you can't see how much food you’ve had, you never get that visual feedback and you end up eating way too much."

Measuring servings and pouring them into a small bowl or onto a napkin will stop you from eating more than you planned.

Ditch dieting.

O'Nova also isn't a fan of traditional dieting because he argues that it limits one's mindset.

Once you're off your diet and have lost weight, you might revert back to eating poorly, not exercising and ultimately regain pounds.

"Instead, focus on your long-term eating habits," he writes. "This is the best way to lose weight and keep it off, the healthy way." 

This post from Sam Harris, an entrepreneur, engineer, and former data scientist at the U.S. Air Force, originally appeared on Quora as an answer to the question, "Is the United States on the brink of a political revolution?"

No. We don't have enough teenagers.

When I was an officer in the Air Force, I was a data scientist, and at one point we were tasked with determining what level of violence in Iraq could be considered "normal" so that we could declare victory and leave with dignity.

Obviously, the base level of violence in Iraq would be higher than in Sweden, but precisely how much higher and why? These were the questions.

We did analysis on hundreds of factors across centuries worth of data from hundreds of countries to determine what drove the levels of violence in a society. The worst violence levels are obviously during civil wars and government collapse.

We looked at wealth inequality, famine, disease, number of children per woman, infant mortality, median GDP, average GDP … literally hundreds of factors and their cross-dependencies that numbered in the quadrillions — think average GDP combined with median life expectancy combined with infant mortality combined with … you get the idea.

What we found was that the most significant factor was the number of individuals aged 13–19 relative to the number of individuals aged over 35. If the teenage group ever exceeded the over 35 group, violence increased to the point there was a very high chance of civil war. Furthermore, the opposite was true. If the 35+ year-olds outnumbered the teenagers, there was no chance of civil war.

Look at Democratic Republic of the Congo:

They have LOTS of teenagers relative to 35+ year-olds.

Now look at the United States:

Teenagers are drastically outnumbered by the 35+ year-olds in 2016. This was not the case in 1860, by the way. The US population pyramid looked a lot more like DRC at the start of our civil war.

These steep pyramids are caused by a combination of factors: high infant mortality, low life expectancy, and low female education. These factors combine to prevent women from using birth control and they "hedge" their losses of children by having a lot of them (too many, actually, even accounting for early deaths).

These numerous children then receive less attention, less affection, and less education. They don't have productive means of employment, and when they get hit with the wave of hormones we all experienced during our teenage years, they aren't in school, don't have a job, and don't have a mother to give them the love they need. All it takes is some charismatic leader to rally them behind a populist cause and boom the powder keg explodes.

The craziest part of my story was that we did this research in 2007. At the time, there were several countries that had the same population pyramid with tons of teenagers but low violence and no civil war: Egypt, Syria, Libya, Yemen, and Iran (Tunisia wasn't as bad, actually).

The "bosses" said this was a real problem with our theory, and we tried to explain it away by saying maybe in the 21st century where dictators have access to fighter jets and tanks that they can hold the teenagers back from starting a civil war. Little did we know we had accidentally predicted the Arab Spring by nearly three years!

I love data. It lends measurability to beliefs. And the data says there is no way we are overthrowing our government in the United States through violence. There just aren't enough teenagers.

Author's note:

Based on all the awesome questions, I've noticed some themes and I'd like to add to my response:

1. Things really aren't that bad in the US

I would like to add an anecdote about how we tend to respond to people we disagree with: Right now, most people say nothing and just go about their day. A large minority go to the trouble of writing things on Facebook or Twitter in ALL CAPS. Still fewer actually go to the trouble of standing outside and holding a sign. And fewer still get into screaming matches. Even less than that will go so far as to physically hit someone they disagree with, and even less than that will actually kill those they disagree with.

In order to reach the levels of violence we saw during the US Civil War, at current population levels, there would have to be over 4,000 politically-motivated killings per day. And in order to reach the levels of violence seen during the DRC Civil War, at current US population levels, it would have to be nearly 25,000 politically-motivated deaths per day. So "there is no way we are overthrowing our government in the United States through violence."

2. I didn't really answer the question

BUT … to be fair … I didn't really answer the OP's question. The question was "Is the United States on the brink of a political revolution?" I talked about violence, how violence can be high during political revolution, and how violence is correlated to the teenagers-to-over-35 ratio. But that doesn't address the possibility of a political revolution without violence or a civil war that doesn't kill a huge amount of people.

Thank you, Kareem Elashmawy for pointing out all of these peaceful revolutions:

1968 Prague Spring
1989 Velvet Revolution
1989 Peaceful Revolution (Germany)
1989 Bulgaria
1991 Soviet Coup D'état
1974 Carnation Revolution
1979 Iranian Revolution
1986 Yellow Revolution
1990 Mongolian Revolution
2000 Bulldozer Revolution
2003 Rose Revolution
2004 Orange Revolution
2005 Cedar Revolution
2001 EDSA Revolution
2005 Ecuador Revolution

Lots of people are asking me about Ukraine's civil war with a population pyramid that doesn't have a lot of teenagers:

My response would be that the death toll is about 4,000 out of 45 million which is around 0.009%. For comparison, 2% of Americans died in our Civil War and 12% died in DRC. Ukraine is not having a very violent civil war by comparison, and many commenters from Ukraine have told me it is not really a civil war at all but rather an invasion made to look like a civil war. I don't know enough about Ukrainian/Russian politics to have an opinion on the subject. However, the correlation between violence and teenagers still holds true for this example.

The most fascinating counter-example was actually Iran in 2005. They had a HUGE bulge in teenage population at that time but a very low murder rate. Their teenage population has since stabilized, and was already significantly lower when the Arab Spring began in 2011.

3. Knowing what you don't know is knowledge

The question I actually answered was: What causes huge levels of violence? My answer was: Having too many teenagers.

People have been asking me all manner of related questions such as:

"So since you didn't answer the original question, what are the causes of political revolutions?"

"Is the violence caused by teenagers or just correlated to large teenage populations and a symptom of the other conditions that caused those large teenage populations in the first place?"

"X country has a lot of violence, why is there no revolution?"

"What can we do to fix this in the countries that are suffering or at risk?"

"Do high levels of teenagers lead to terrorism?"

"Are you sure it's the lack of a mother's love and not the lack of a father's role model that causes the violence?"

"What are the trends for age of population in more peaceful revolutions?"

My answer to these and dozens of others is: I don't know.

Knowing what you don't know is knowledge. One of the things you learn as a data scientist is that most of the things we think we know are actually illusions. You start with a hypothesis — a gut instinct about what you think is happening in the data — but then you try your hardest to prove that your gut instinct is wrong.

If you "fail to reject" that hypothesis with more than 95% confidence, then you can feel confident that know something about that one specific question. The second someone asks you a related but not identical question, you have to start over from scratch and do it all again.

These answers are very expensive. This was the work of a dozen well-paid men and women working off and on for months. It's not like I figured it out on my own one afternoon, so unfortunately, I can't easily answer all of your other questions.

I think this whole process will get much faster and much cheaper once machine learning algorithms become more ubiquitous. You can, for example, drag and drop workflows in Azure Machine Learning Studio and let the computer do the hard work. Things that used to take several people weeks to do can now be done in seconds. I encourage all of you who are curious to check it out. They have beginner videos — you don't have to be a professional data scientist to use the models. That is what so amazing about where this technology is going!

SEE ALSO: Lawmakers across the US are trying to make it easier for young people to vote — including lowering the voting age to 17

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This post from Brian Roemmele, founder and editor at Read Multiplex and former Amazon employee, originally appeared on Quora as an answer to the question, "What is Jeff Bezos' "Day 1" philosophy?"

"The outside world can push you into Day 2 if you won't or can't embrace powerful trends quickly. If you fight them, you're probably fighting the future. Embrace them and you have a tailwind"— Jeff Bezos

'Day 1'

A recent Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing, Amazon Exhibit 99.1 statement, is really quite interesting. Also known as the 2016 Letter to Shareholders, in it Jeff Bezos sketched out a philosophy that he calls "Day 1" and "Day 2."

This idea came about in the very early days of Amazon. He occupied a building called "Day 1," named as a reminder that the company should always be in "Day 1" mode. Jeff sees "Day 2" as a stasis, or worse, the reversal of the "Day 1" concept followed by irrelevance. Followed by excruciating, painful decline. Followed by death.

This idea has become a bit of folklore inside Amazon. Jeff's attention to the "Day 1 concept" is credited to much of Amazon's success. "Day 1" has become something of a legend.

Here is a summary of the concept:

Focus on results and not process

Jeff explained that as a company grows, it becomes easy to rely on process rather than results. In that case, the process becomes "the thing." When that happens, sometimes companies stop looking at outcomes and only consider whether they have followed the process correctly, not whether the desired outcome was achieved.

Make decisions quickly

Jeff wrote that "Day 2" companies do actually make good decisions, but the problem is they make them slowly. He wrote that start-ups have no problem making high-quality, high-velocity decisions, but large organizations struggle to do the same. He stated: "The senior team at Amazon is determined to keep our decision-making velocity high. Speed matters in business — plus a high-velocity decision-making environment is more fun too."

To make that happen, the "Day 1" process has a "disagree and commit" system for employees. The idea is that not everyone will agree on a decision, but it's still possible for people who disagree to work toward the same goal. He mentioned not being sure of a proposed Amazon Prime television series, partly because of his level of interest in it, and partly because of the business terms of the deal.

He said: "I had a completely different opinion and wanted to go ahead. I wrote back right away with, 'I disagree and commit and hope it becomes the most-watched thing we've ever made,'" he wrote. "Consider how much slower this decision cycle would have been if the team had actually had to convince me rather than simply get my commitment."

Look outside the company

The most telling insight into the "Day 1" philosophy is: "The outside world can push you into Day 2 if you won't or can't embrace powerful trends quickly, if you fight them, you're probably fighting the future. Embrace them and you have a tailwind." He said that big trends are not that hard to spot, but that many times large companies have trouble embracing what is happening.

He noted that the world is currently involved in a major trend involving machine learning and artificial intelligence. This is also the reason the Echo/Alexa systems are some of the fastest-growing and highest-selling Amazon products in history. He stated, "We still struggle to keep Echo in stock, despite our best efforts. A high-quality problem, but a problem. We're working on it."

Amazon has also embraced this trend in a number of ways, including experiments like its delivery drones and the Amazon Go convenience store, which uses machine vision to eliminate checkout lines. Jeff stated: "Machine learning drives our algorithms for demand forecasting, product search ranking, product and deals recommendations, merchandising placements, fraud detection, translations, and much more, though less visible, much of the impact of machine learning will be of this type — quietly but meaningfully improving core operations."

Market research

Jeff wrote: "Another example: market research and customer surveys can become proxies for customers – something that's especially dangerous when you're inventing and designing products. 'Fifty-five percent of beta testers report being satisfied with this feature. That is up from 47% in the first survey.' That's hard to interpret and could unintentionally mislead."

This premise also partly drove Steve Jobs at Apple. It most certainly informs how Amazon is building the Voice First revolution. I wrote about the 1,000 person army Jeff has created, just for Alexa.

The 'Day 1' manifesto

The "Day 1" concept forms the basis of the Amazon manifesto. I find this to be one of the best shareholder letters I have ever read, and I have read many over the decades. The driving goals are not just words, but fully activated concepts used within Amazon every day. This is a rare peek inside the mind that has crafted these concepts for over 20 years.

Here is the Amazon Exhibit 99.1 statement for the SEC, and it connects the original Exhibit 99 filed during the original IPO of the company in 1997:

"Jeff, what does Day 2 look like?"

That's a question I just got at our most recent all-hands meeting. I've been reminding people that it's Day 1 for a couple of decades. I work in an Amazon building named Day 1, and when I moved buildings, I took the name with me. I spend time thinking about this topic.

"Day 2 is stasis. Followed by irrelevance. Followed by excruciating, painful decline. Followed by death. And that is why it is always Day 1."

To be sure, this kind of decline would happen in extreme slow motion. An established company might harvest Day 2 for decades, but the final result would still come.

I'm interested in the question, how do you fend off Day 2? What are the techniques and tactics? How do you keep the vitality of Day 1, even inside a large organization?

Such a question can't have a simple answer. There will be many elements, multiple paths, and many traps. I don't know the whole answer, but I may know bits of it. Here's a starter pack of essentials for Day 1 defense: customer obsession, a skeptical view of proxies, the eager adoption of external trends, and high-velocity decision making.

True Customer Obsession

There are many ways to center a business. You can be competitor focused, you can be product focused, you can be technology focused, you can be business model focused, and there are more. But in my view, obsessive customer focus is by far the most protective of Day 1 vitality.

Why? There are many advantages to a customer-centric approach, but here's the big one: customers are always beautifully, wonderfully dissatisfied, even when they report being happy and business is great. Even when they don't yet know it, customers want something better, and your desire to delight customers will drive you to invent on their behalf. No customer ever asked Amazon to create the Prime membership program, but it sure turns out they wanted it, and I could give you many such examples.

Staying in Day 1 requires you to experiment patiently, accept failures, plant seeds, protect saplings, and double down when you see customer delight. A customer-obsessed culture best creates the conditions where all of that can happen.

Resist Proxies

As companies get larger and more complex, there's a tendency to manage to proxies. This comes in many shapes and sizes, and it's dangerous, subtle, and very Day 2.

A common example is process as proxy. Good process serves you so you can serve customers. But if you're not watchful, the process can become the thing. This can happen very easily in large organizations. The process becomes the proxy for the result you want. You stop looking at outcomes and just make sure you're doing the process right. Gulp. It's not that rare to hear a junior leader defend a bad outcome with something like, "Well, we followed the process." A more experienced leader will use it as an opportunity to investigate and improve the process. The process is not the thing. It's always worth asking, do we own the process or does the process own us? In a Day 2 company, you might find it's the second.

Another example: market research and customer surveys can become proxies for customers – something that's especially dangerous when you're inventing and designing products. "Fifty-five percent of beta testers report being satisfied with this feature. That is up from 47% in the first survey." That's hard to interpret and could unintentionally mislead.

Good inventors and designers deeply understand their customer. They spend tremendous energy developing that intuition. They study and understand many anecdotes rather than only the averages you'll find on surveys. They live with the design.

I'm not against beta testing or surveys. But you, the product or service owner, must understand the customer, have a vision, and love the offering. Then, beta testing and research can help you find your blind spots. A remarkable customer experience starts with heart, intuition, curiosity, play, guts, taste. You won't find any of it in a survey.

Embrace External Trends

The outside world can push you into Day 2 if you won't or can't embrace powerful trends quickly. If you fight them, you're probably fighting the future. Embrace them and you have a tailwind.

These big trends are not that hard to spot (they get talked and written about a lot), but they can be strangely hard for large organizations to embrace. We're in the middle of an obvious one right now: machine learning and artificial intelligence.

Over the past decades computers have broadly automated tasks that programmers could describe with clear rules and algorithms. Modern machine learning techniques now allow us to do the same for tasks where describing the precise rules is much harder.

At Amazon, we've been engaged in the practical application of machine learning for many years now. Some of this work is highly visible: our autonomous Prime Air delivery drones; the Amazon Go convenience store that uses machine vision to eliminate checkout lines; and Alexa,1 our cloud-based AI assistant. (We still struggle to keep Echo in stock, despite our best efforts. A high-quality problem, but a problem. We're working on it.)

But much of what we do with machine learning happens beneath the surface. Machine learning drives our algorithms for demand forecasting, product search ranking, product and deals recommendations, merchandising placements, fraud detection, translations, and much more. Though less visible, much of the impact of machine learning will be of this type – quietly but meaningfully improving core operations.

Inside AWS, we're excited to lower the costs and barriers to machine learning and AI so organizations of all sizes can take advantage of these advanced techniques.

Using our pre-packaged versions of popular deep learning frameworks running on P2 compute instances (optimized for this workload), customers are already developing powerful systems ranging everywhere from early disease detection to increasing crop yields. And we've also made Amazon's higher level services available in a convenient form. Amazon Lex (what's inside Alexa), Amazon Polly, and Amazon Rekognition remove the heavy lifting from natural language understanding, speech generation, and image analysis. They can be accessed with simple API calls – no machine learning expertise required. Watch this space. Much more to come.

High-Velocity Decision Making

Day 2 companies make high-quality decisions, but they make high-quality decisions slowly. To keep the energy and dynamism of Day 1, you have to somehow make high-quality, high-velocity decisions. Easy for start-ups and very challenging for large organizations. The senior team at Amazon is determined to keep our decision-making velocity high. Speed matters in business – plus a high-velocity decision making environment is more fun too. We don't know all the answers, but here are some thoughts.

First, never use a one-size-fits-all decision-making process. Many decisions are reversible, two-way doors. Those decisions can use a light-weight process. For those, so what if you're wrong? I wrote about this in more detail in last year's letter.

Second, most decisions should probably be made with somewhere around 70% of the information you wish you had. If you wait for 90%, in most cases, you're probably being slow. Plus, either way, you need to be good at quickly recognizing and correcting bad decisions. If you're good at course correcting, being wrong may be less costly than you think, whereas being slow is going to be expensive for sure.

Third, use the phrase "disagree and commit." This phrase will save a lot of time. If you have conviction on a particular direction even though there's no consensus, it's helpful to say, "Look, I know we disagree on this but will you gamble with me on it? Disagree and commit?" By the time you're at this point, no one can know the answer for sure, and you'll probably get a quick yes.

This isn't one way. If you're the boss, you should do this too. I disagree and commit all the time. We recently greenlit a particular Amazon Studios original. I told the team my view: debatable whether it would be interesting enough, complicated to produce, the business terms aren't that good, and we have lots of other opportunities. They had a completely different opinion and wanted to go ahead. I wrote back right away with "I disagree and commit and hope it becomes the most watched thing we've ever made." Consider how much slower this decision cycle would have been if the team had actually had to convince me rather than simply get my commitment.

Note what this example is not: it's not me thinking to myself "well, these guys are wrong and missing the point, but this isn't worth me chasing." It's a genuine disagreement of opinion, a candid expression of my view, a chance for the team to weigh my view, and a quick, sincere commitment to go their way. And given that this team has already brought home 11 Emmys, 6 Golden Globes, and 3 Oscars, I'm just glad they let me in the room at all!

Fourth, recognize true misalignment issues early and escalate them immediately. Sometimes teams have different objectives and fundamentally different views. They are not aligned. No amount of discussion, no number of meetings will resolve that deep misalignment. Without escalation, the default dispute resolution mechanism for this scenario is exhaustion. Whoever has more stamina carries the decision.

I've seen many examples of sincere misalignment at Amazon over the years. When we decided to invite third party sellers to compete directly against us on our own product detail pages – that was a big one. Many smart, well-intentioned Amazonians were simply not at all aligned with the direction. The big decision set up hundreds of smaller decisions, many of which needed to be escalated to the senior team.

"You've worn me down" is an awful decision-making process. It's slow and de-energizing. Go for quick escalation instead – it's better.

So, have you settled only for decision quality, or are you mindful of decision velocity too? Are the world's trends tailwinds for you? Are you falling prey to proxies, or do they serve you? And most important of all, are you delighting customers? We can have the scope and capabilities of a large company and the spirit and heart of a small one. But we have to choose it.

A huge thank you to each and every customer for allowing us to serve you, to our shareowners for your support, and to Amazonians everywhere for your hard work, your ingenuity, and your passion.

As always, I attach a copy of our original 1997 letter. It remains Day 1.

Sincerely,

Jeff

Sources: EX-99.1, Jeff Bezos and his 1,000-person Alexa army are building the future

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This post from Bernie Klinder, EMBA, entrepreneur, investor, and consultant, originally appeared on Quora as an answer to the question, "Why are some wealthy people so frugal?"

One of things you learn quickly when managing your wealth is how difficult it is to get a decent return on your money without a lot of risk.

Getting a 5% or 10% return year-over-year is considered doing well. Investors get really excited over 15% returns.

But if I can save 15% or more on things I buy every day, and add the savings to an account that earns interest, then the money compounds and grows.

People get nickled and dimed on stupid stuff all day long. They shop based on convenience and waste money on lottery tickets, overpriced snacks, interest on credit cards, bank fees, etc. When the average person saves money on a purchase, he or she often views it as having more money to spend on other things.

If you understand wealth, you look at it differently: You paid dearly for the money earned as direct income. Between federal, state, local, Social Security, and local sales tax, about half your income is gone before you can do anything with it. So for every dollar you earn at your job, you might keep 60 cents or less of it.

So a dollar saved is worth nearly $2 earned. If you start to figure out how many hours you have to work to earn $100 after taxes, you'll view your cable bill differently.

Most people have a lot of debt and very little savings. The goal is just the opposite: You should save 15% of your pretax income via tax-deferred investments like a 401(k) and an additional 20% to 25% of your after-tax income. As you can guess, I have a strict budget even though I'm in the top income bracket and wealthier than 95% of Americans.

Fifty percent of my after-tax income goes to my mandatory household bills: Mortgage, car payment, utilities, etc. But what if I can consistently save an additional 10% a month on the other half by looking for frugal ways to save money — saving 10% here and 20% there on the things I buy consistently, like gas, groceries, household staples, and major purchases? This isn't uncommon among high-income individuals. Households with more than $100,000 in annual income are among the most likely to use coupons.

For example, by not spending $10 a day for lunch or overpriced coffee, you'll save $200. Let's keep the math simple and assume you save that $200 every month. At the end of 12 months, you'll have $2,400. If you save an additional $50, you'll end up with $3,000. Big deal, right?

But if you add that amount to an investment for a few years, it's huge. Even investing that portion in my conservative bond fund, that change adds up:

Here is what $200 a month adds up to:

Here is $250 a month:

That's a $7,000 difference. Not impressed? Imagine you are a making a higher level of income, and multiple your savings amount by 10 to $2,500 a month. That's a $70,000 difference!

Now let's look at it from another point of view. Let's assume you were born wealthy, and you have a trust fund with $10 million in it, earning the same 3.5% interest. That would give you $350,000 a year of income (pretax) without ever touching the principal. Monthly, that's $29,500 of "beer money."

But if you decided to scale back a little bit and dropped your income to a "mere" $20,000 a month, you'd have an additional $1.4 million in your account in just 10 years, earning $392,000 a year in interest.

As I mentioned in my post "Is it true that the more money you have the richer you will get?" wealth has a certain momentum to it. It's hard to get things going, but if you develop the right habits and spend less than you earn, your money will grow over time. Pennies saved become dimes, dimes become dollars, etc. As it grows, your money will start to work for you, instead of you working so hard for money.

SEE ALSO: An HBS grad whose company simplifies complicated financial concepts to fit on a napkin shares her favorite one

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Breakups are hard, and getting over one is even harder.

Luckily, there are people all over the world that have been through one, and since they know how tough it can be they're ready to help.

A popular Quora thread asked people to share the first thing they did after a break up. While there may be psychologically proven ways to heal a broken heart, these answers are tried-and-true.

Here are 13 ways to get over a breakup according to Quora users. 

Hit the gym.

Quora user Nicolas Cole did one of the most stereotypical things a person can do after a breakup: go to the gym. Even though it's a cliché, he claimed that it helped him stay focused and cope.

"I did the most stereotypical thing a guy could do. I went hard in the gym," he wrote. "The daily discipline of it is what helped keep me focused on 'coping' in positive ways."

He wasn't the only user who found this trick helpful.

Write a book or start journaling.

Another user on Quora said that he finally did something he's always wanted to do. For Avish Kaushik that was writing a book.

"I started writing a book the very same day. I just started typing out the whole journey with her and planned to publish it as a book. It obviously won't be helpful for me to forget her, but then I realized 'let's just use it as an opportunity to achieve something,'" Kaushik wrote.

Other users found journaling or writing in a diary to be helpful. 

Do the things you love.

Quora user Christian Montes de Oca went back to the basics. Instead of picking up a new hobby, he decided to do all the things he never had time for while he was in a relationship.  

"The first thing I did — after all the thinking and crying and what not — even if it sounds cliché, was to go out with my guy friends and do guy stuff. Watch football, drink beer, go to the clubs and just hang around," de Oca said. "Many times in my relationship I ‘had’ to reject some previous invitations from friends, so this was the perfect time to get back on track."

We all strive to be memorable. But leaving a great first impression takes some effort.

As it turns out, with the right words and actions, almost anyone can create a captivating presence.

To help you figure out how to do this, we looked at the answers posted on Quora in response to the question, "How do I become more memorable when meeting someone for the first time?"

Here were some of our favorite tips for making yourself memorable when you first meet someone new:

DON'T MISS: 21 things you should never say when you meet someone new

1. Put on your talking hat

If you actively participate in the conversation, you're more likely to get noticed.

Julian Reisinger, a Quora user and co-founder of Lovelifesolved.com, wrote that by asking questions, showing interest, and sharing stories or anecdotes, you're more likely to make a lasting impression and forge a connection with someone.

"People will never remember the guy who just stands there and says nothing," Reisinger writes.

2. Be blunt, controversial, and honest

Most people avoid saying anything controversial — especially when meeting someone for the first time — because they want to play it safe to ensure everyone likes them.

But if you really want to be memorable, you may want to make a statement — without insulting anyone or saying something offensive, of course.

"You can't become memorable by always playing it safe,"Reisinger writes. 

That doesn't mean you have to be an outlier, but by speaking your mind firmly and clearly and having an opinion, you will become more interesting and as a result more memorable, he writes. 

3. Be a little bit unusual

Breaking out of the cultural norm is an easy way to stick out, Reisinger writes, but try to stick out in a positive way. 

For example, he suggests coming up with humorous and unique answers to the typical introductory questions such as "How are you?" or "What do you do?" 

Most people have experienced writer's block at one time or another, regardless of whether you're a professional writer or not.

Whether it's a novel, poem, essay, or even an email or letter, sometimes the words just won't come.

To help you get over writer's block, we've gone through some answers from published authors and writers to the question "What are some tips to get rid of writer's block?" on Quora.

Here are 7 of their best tips for overcoming writer's block:

SEE ALSO: 6 writing mistakes even good leaders make, and how to avoid them

Ask questions

When you can't think of what to write, you can get your mind going by answering the "five W's," namely, "Who, what, where, when, and why," writes K.M. Weiland, an author of historical and speculative fiction, on Quora.

"I've filled notebooks upon notebooks with my why-ing and what if-ing, especially during the outlining stages," she writes. "This is a process that has never failed me."

By journaling and writing down your thoughts in a stream-of-consciousness mode, you get your writing muscle going rather than just sitting and fuming in frustration, Weiland says.

Leave a few loose threads every day

Weiland also writes that if you "make it a habit" to stop yourself mid-sentence or mid-idea when you're writing, and leave yourself a few "loose threads," you'll have something to start on the next day, rather than sitting around waiting for the inspiration to come to you.

Brainstorm ahead of time

Instead of brainstorming when you sit down to write, take the time to come up with ideas in between writing sessions.

Weiland, for example, walks down to her mailbox every day after writing and uses that time to "run over scenes" she plans to work on the next day, "identify potential problems, and just generally form a plan of attack."

Since brainstorming and writing are two different processes, Weiland says it's helpful to break them up and brainstorm when you don't absolutely need a computer or notebook in front of you. It's also a good idea to do this when you're walking or commuting.

This post from Natalie Engelbrecht, psychotherapist, naturopathic doctor, and researcher, originally appeared on Quora as an answer to the question, "Why do we kiss?" 

The scientific study of kissing is called “philematology” (philos in ancient Greek = earthly love). During a kiss, couples exchange 9 mg of water, 0.7 mg of protein, 0.18 mg of organic compounds, 0.71 mg of fats, and 0.45 mg of sodium chloride, along with 10 million to 1 billion bacteria according to one estimate [1].

Kisses use as little as two muscles, burning only 2 to 3 calories, while passionate kissing involves up to 34 facial muscles along with 112 postural muscles and burns around 26 calories per minute [2].

The original theory was that primate mothers chewed their food for their babies. However, as evolution continued the kiss began to be used to pass on information regarding biological compatibility of a mate via pheromone chemical signals as well as promote social bonding and expressing love, with the ultimate goal of procreation.

With the kiss, partners are able to get close enough to each other to assess essential characteristics about each other, none of which are consciously processed. Although the vomeronasal organs—which are responsible for pheromone detection and brain function in animals—are thought to be vestigial and inactive in humans. Research indicates we do communicate with chemicals.

One study found that when women were asked to smell T-shirts of different men and choose their favourite, the choice was not made randomly but was based on the man whose major histo-compatibility complex (MHC)—a series of genes involved in the males immune system—was different from their own. The importance of this is that different MHCs mean less immune overlap which indicates more healthy offspring.

While men are not selective in terms of kissing, women are very choosy. This is because on an evolutionary level women were looking for a mate to raise their offspring with, and kissing could be an unconscious but accurate way for women to assess the immune compatibility of a mate, before she invests too much time and energy in him.

While males will have sex with women without kissing them beforehand as well as have sex with a woman who is not a good kisser, most women will never have sex without kissing first [3]. Men tend to initiate French kissing and research suggests this is because saliva contains testosterone and this increases the sex drive of their mate. Furthermore, men are able to sense a woman’s level of estrogen which is a predictor of her fertility [4] .

“There is evidence that saliva has testosterone in it,” said Rutgers University anthropologist Helen Fisher, “and testosterone increases sex drive. And there is evidence that men like sloppier kisses with more open mouth. That suggests they are unconsciously trying to transfer testosterone to stimulate sex drive in women.” [5]

Hormone levels change after kissing. Specifically cortisol (stress) levels decreased in men and women after kissing, and the longer a couple is together the lower their stress hormones get. Interestingly oxytocin levels increase in men, however women’s levels decreased.

One theory is that women need more than a kiss to stimulate attachment and bonding. Kissing raises testosterone which increases sex drive, and also increases dopamine promoting romantic love, and oxytocin (men only) which promotes bonding.

Other benefits includes a modest increase in blood pressure and heart rate which helps our cardiac health, increased saliva produced during active kissing which helps to prevent tooth decay, and men who kiss their wives in the morning live 5 years longer on average and also make more money.

Footnotes

[1] Philematology: The Science of Kissing. A Message for the Marital Month of June

[2] Philematology: The Science of Kissing. A Message for the Marital Month of June

[3] A Kiss is Still a Kiss -- or is it?

[4] Saliva: Secret Ingredient in the Best Kisses

[5] http://"There is evidence that s...

SEE ALSO: Here's how to know if you're a good kisser

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Ali Fedotowsky walked away from Facebook when she opted to be ABC's Bachelorette.

Robert Cezar Matei missed his chance to join early Facebook, Square and Instagram teams.

It's impossible to know which startup is going to become the next billion dollar success story, and the risk of letting a golden opportunity slip through your fingers is something that tech workers grapple with every day.

While some who turn down lucrative offers still achieve success — Instagram's Kevin Systrom is a prime example — others may come to live in regret.

Here are how some Silicon Valley techies missed opportunities to make millions at companies like Facebook and Instagram:

SEE ALSO: Here's where Google's first 21 employees are now

Instagram wanted Amanda Wixted to be its first hire but she was cozy at Zynga.

First, we should note that Wixted is plenty successful. She joined Zynga as an early employee and stayed through its IPO. But she probably could have made even more millions if she had left for Instagram when it came calling in 2010.

Wixted writes about her missed opportunity on Quora:

In June 2010, Mike and Kevin were just getting started on their mobile web app which they called Burbn.  I was a lead engineer on the mobile team at Zynga at the time.  Mike contacted me about coming on board as their first hire.  We met, and they showed me their ideas for where they were thinking of heading with Burbn: a photo-sharing mobile app.

... It was a great team fit, but I just couldn't get excited about a photo-sharing app.  I felt, and I still feel, that I need to be working on more complicated things, so I've stayed in the games space...Of course, I'm kicking myself now.  Hindsight is 20/20 and all.

Now, Wixted is the founder of Meteor Grove Software and serves as CTO for e-learning company Homer. 

Ali Fedotowsky left Facebook to become the lead on ABC's "The Bachelorette." Sadly, she and the guy she picked didn't work out.

In 2009, Ali Fedotowsky faced a dilemma: She was a contestant on "The Bachelor" dating pilot Jake Palveka. In a tearful goodbye, she left Palveka to return to her job at Facebook. Fedotowsky had run out of vacation days while filming the show and didn't want to miss out on millions.

But when ABC offered to make her its Bachelorette, Fedotowsky left her sales rep gig at Facebook. Two years after her March 2010 departure, Facebook had a massive IPO that turned many of its employees into millionaires.

Fedotowsky's engagement to contestant Roberto Martinez ended shortly after the show aired and while Facebook didn't re-hire her, she went on to be a host on NBC's "1st Look." Now, Fedotowsky is married to TV and radio host Kevin Manno and writes a blog called Ali Luvs.

Julian Targowski was offered a role at Instagram in 2011 but walked away to launch his own app.

Julian Targowski was offered a role at Instagram in October 2011 but walked away to launch his own app.

He says he wasn't even interested in the offer because he was loyal to his own team.

"I don't regret a thing," he says on Quora. "You realize a lot of things about yourself (how content you are with your current situation, how hard you're working, where you want to be in the next few years, etc) when things like this happen."

Targowski went on to work at a startup called DailyBooth, which was acquired by Airbnb in 2012.