Everyone has had at least one example of that glorious moment where something you were mocked for ends up mattering. Double checking if the oven is off, packing some spare batteries, or even just buying an extra of something “just in case.”

So if you’re interested in hearing other folks' stories, we’ve gathered examples of “little” precautions people have taken that actually ended up paying off in the long run. So get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote your favorites and be sure to share your thoughts in the comments below.

#1

Take pictures of EVERYTHING before you move into a rental. So many times landlords have tried to dock my deposit for things that were there before I moved in.

Image credits: Petite_Paula

#2

Keep and print a LOT of emails and sending a lot of "As we discussed" communications. I still have my emails from 2001.

Image credits: Whynotbutnot

#3

Checking my pockets for my keys before I lock myself out.

Image credits: anon

#4

Always keeping extra pads in my purse, for myself & if anybody else needs them.

Image credits: bunnygiirlxo

#5

I was working on an electrical system that was, according to another technician, already disconnected from it's power supply inside the case it was housed in. So I could just swap out my parts, reconnect the power, and everything is good.

Just to be safe, I went to the electrical room and disconnected the breaker to the case I was working on, then I swapped out my parts, noticing that several wires were not secure, so I reconnected them. I went back to the breaker, flipped it on, and return to my work to find everything powered already. The f*****g idiot disconnected the wrong wires for the power. If I had swapped out my parts, they would've shorted out and I probably would've gotten lit up like a Christmas tree.

Image credits: Cyanora

#6

Late December early January 2020 when I was starting to hear about Covid, I decided to stock up on toilet paper and disinfectant wipes. Best decision ever. Never ran out of it, actually ended up giving a few rolls to a friend.

Image credits: Foxytap

#7

Retaking an std test because I was almost certain that the first one was a false negative.

Second one came back positive, got meds, and have since tested negative. Just glad I didn't spread something to other people.

Image credits: BigFatAnimeTitties

#8

Googled if I could put bleach in a drain I just put baking soda and vinegar in.

Image credits: thatdumbbitchjess

#9

I’m sure that vasectomy I got after my divorce has paid off several times.

Image credits: mikess314

#10

I angled a bunch of steel fence posts we loaded into the back of our car rather than having them straight on. Just had a feeling.

We got rear ended at a full stop by a guy doing 60mph. The posts got jammed sideways rather than forward.

Image credits: chiksahlube

#11

Wore a motorcycle jacket. I would usually head out in a lightweight urban style bike jacket with protective shoulders and forearms. I wore a fully protective jacket because i had a weird feeling, and i ended up sliding and hitting a curb at stupid speed in the middle of nowhere. I was flung as soon as my wheels hit the curb and the bikes wheel had landed on my back between my shoulders. Doctors were amazed i walked into A+E by my own, nevermind alive. If it wasnt for that jacket and the protective back plate, it wouldnt have looked so good. If you ride a motorcycle, wear your gear. It will save your life.

Image credits: dom123458990

#12

My dad always tells me to look both ways before driving into an intersection after it turns green. One day I looked both ways in a major city, was about to go, and a car came flying through a red light. I for sure would've been in the hospital if I didn't look, likely would be dead. Just to be safe, I always look both ways.

Image credits: Odysseus126

#13

Back when I did civil work, I had a client who got sued by a former business partner. These two guys had known each other for decades and their relationship had seriously soured. The former partner sued both one of my client's many companies **and** my client personally.

One of the first things you have to do when you're sued is file an answer to the lawsuit within a specific time. If you don't, the other side automatically wins and then can have a hearing to determine money damages and demand the defendant come to court to show how they're going to satisfy that debt.

You can always call opposing counsel to get an extension of time in which to answer and, absent very extraordinary circumstances, the extensions are routinely granted. I called opposing counsel and asked for an indefinite extension of time to answer because my client told me he and his partner were going to try to work things out. Opposing counsel agreed.

It's generally accepted practice where I was practicing at the time for the party granting the extension to send the other party a letter memorializing the extension. For some reason, I sent the letter instead, noting the indefinite extension of time to answer and an agreement that the other side would notify me before taking any action detrimental to my client.

Fast forward four or five years. I was no longer representing the client. It wasn't an adversarial thing; I simply moved the focus of my practice and my former client got another attorney. But I got a panicked call from my former client saying that his former partner was trying to have his house seized to satisfy the default judgment they had taken in the old case.

I ended up having to testify at a hearing, with the letter I had written, and the email I had attached it to when I sent it to opposing counsel. Opposing counsel, without notifying me or my former client's current attorney, took a default judgment, saying that client hadn't answered in time, so his client won and deserved a six-figure judgment.

When he took the stand, all he could say was he didn't remember any conversation with me and didn't remember granting such an extension. But he agreed that the email address on the copy of the email in evidence was his email.

The judge, in a written ruling, ruled in favor of my former client based almost exclusively on my testimony, and the letter and email. I don't know for sure, but I think she also reported the other attorney to the bar association for what he did.

Image credits: who_are_you_now

#14

I lifted the drain in the bathtub in my hotel room Wednesday of last week, when I noticed it was down. I usually don’t mind a bit of standing water when I shower but this time I just sort of reached down without really thinking about it.

Soaked under the hot water at the end of a cold day for 15-20 minutes. Woke up 5 hours later lying on my back in the tub, limbs everywhere else, staring up at the showerhead still running hot water down on me.

Still don’t know why or how I passed out after multiple CT scans, an MRI, EEG, and an ultrasound on my heart. Maybe the hot water made me lightheaded, maybe I slipped, and either way can’t recall the moment due to getting reconcussed in the process. I’m lucky I woke up at all after five hours in what was essentially a sauna. But I definitely would have drowned if I hadn’t noticed the tub was plugged and, against my norm, unplugged it.

Image credits: ChiefSteward

#15

I was booking an anniversary trip to Turkey with my wife. I planned flights from London to Ataturk airport, plus a few flights within Turkey. It took a lot of work to plan the itinerary. When I went to book the flight, I was given the option to pay or to hold the flight for 24 hours. “Just to be safe” and make sure I could get the hotel I had chosen, I selected the save for 24 hour option. Given my inherent distrust of technology, and not wanting to lose all the hard work I had put into planning the itinerary, “just to be safe”, I saved the itinerary to PDF so I could recreate it if needed.

After saving the itinerary, I began the work of booking the hotel, but it was very late, and I was tired, so I said, “Screw it; I’ll book the hotel in the morning.” When morning rolled around and I started booking the hotel, I saw that overnight Turkey had shot down a Russian jet. “Just to be safe”, I decided to wait a while to complete booking of the trip.

The decision to wait turned out to be the right one. Although the response from Russia was muted, the s**t hit the fan in neighbouring Syria and I decided maybe visiting Turkey wasn’t for us. I gave up on the trip, “just to be safe”.

That decision to abandon the trip was validated when six months later, terrorists attacked Atatürk airport, killing 48 people and injuring 230+ people. Curious, I dug out that old PDF to check the dates. Given the itinerary and the timing of the attack, I would have been at Ataturk airport, awaiting the flight back to London.

That save-for-24-hours option saved my a*s.

#16

Usually when I go deep into the woods for camping, I rely on fish for food, but I usually bring a couple things of crackers and a propane stove to make sure I don't have any issues. About 3 years ago, I took my trip a little too late into the Olympic National Forest and ended up getting caught by snow that was supposed to hold off for another week.

I had packed an extra freeze-dried meal bag because I thought it might be good (it was spaghetti and meat sauce, REALLY tasty). The lake I wanted to fish was hard to get to, and I had to spend the night freezing my a*s off, so I cooked that freeze-dried meal, and not only was I warm, I was full.

Now, I always overpack to make sure I don't get f****d. I don't know what I was thinking, being alone out there at 16 with not enough gear to really last me. Now I keep double what I need in my rig.

Image credits: dublklutch

#17

Not me, but a cop friend. A couple was brought to the police station after a bad fight. My friend, a rookie at the time, managed to convince them to make peace, and they left holding hands.

When they left, an experienced officer told him he should file their (previous) complaints anyway, so if they fought again it didn't come to bite his behind. He did it, and the next day there was a very popular radio program accusing the police of refusing to file a couple's complaint and "forcing" them to make peace. He thankfully had the file and could cover his a**.

#18

Brought a c****m just in case my FWB at the time was in the mood. She didn’t even care. Said

‘Come on. Just do it inside’

‘You on the pill?’

‘Uuuuum-‘

‘C****m!’.

Image credits: anon

#19

Parked my car further down the street so that I wouldn’t be boxed in if the club got raided.

Club got raided and they boxed the street in. I strolled down the street casually and got in my car and left.

Image credits: Used-BandiCoochie

#20

Weirdly enough? Getting an STD test after my ex cheated on me. No STDs but they did a pap as part of it to test for HPV and that’s how I found out I actually had cancer cells on my cervix. I wasn’t due for a pap for several months but because they caught it so early they were able to get it with a LEEP procedure. My gyno said it likely would have progressed further and I might have needed further treatment if I hadn’t had the forethought to get tested because he cheated. 🤷🏻‍♀️.

#21

When hurricane Ida was approaching it came to mind that our house was surrounded by big old trees, so 'just to be safe' we headed north. The day after the storm our neighbors called and told us that a large tree had fallen and split out house in two. If we had been there we would have been either killed or seriously injured.

Image credits: drawnnquarter

#22

Working with my best friend, best man at my wedding - built a company together. He sends me an email that includes the line "just sue me if I screw you."

If somebody ever sends you an email with that line in it, my advice is to send a copy to your personal email - even if it seems like nothing could possibly go wrong. Even when you're friends. I'm glad I did.

When it came up in the mediation, his lawyer was like "yeah you should just settle.".

#23

This is the short version but heads up, it's definitely rough!


I used to smoke with all my homies, in a car that my mom had parked outside my grandparents house, the car had manual windows and was 4 door. We used to just chill and stuff but I was a goofy fat kid and would climb in and out of the windows in weird ways, saying "you never know, one day I'm going to need to do something like this and I'll be the one to save us all!"

I've got goosebumps right now while I'm writing this..

Fast-forward about 10 years and I had forgotten all about saying those words, it was my birthday 2015 and a friend of ours drove us off a bridge. It killed him and my homegirl who were in the front seat, pinned me under my brother in the back seat, trapped in the upside down truck, freezing in a creekbed in 4" of water, my brother and I discovered there was only one way out...

Through the window, behind/beside me...

It wasn't until 4-5 days later, in the hospital bed, that one of the girls that used to smoke with us reminded me of my words and goofy self climbing out of the windows of that car... That girl passed away a couple of years ago and I'll never forget that again.

My birthday is 12/11/89.... I'm reliving all of it again and again and again. 😢

May God bless their souls to a peaceful rest.
😢.

Image credits: HungNHornyBWC89

#24

My grandpa was trying to turn on a gas grill. But it wasn't starting. So to be safe i got a cup of soapy water to check for leaks and poured the soapy water in the gas hose and I saw some bubbles coming out so I quickly shut off the gas, My grandpa was about to use a match to light the grill, if i hadn't caught that we would have had an explosion. We would have died over some rib eye steaks.

Image credits: anon

#25

I was young in my teens back in the 90s, I use to go to an arcade by a movie theater in commerce, there was a gang member in the arcade playing games, then two from another gang started s**t with the one guy.

yeah I saw the writing on the walls and left, when I got home the news was saying cops were responding to a shooting at the arcade I was just at. there was a shooting and bystanders got hit like 15min after I left.

thank you spider senses.

#26

I worked in a grocery store and when covid started to freak people out and the quarantine was being talked about, I decided just to be safe Id set abunch of basic necessities and toilet paper aside in the back room for the employees to be able to purchase since a lot of us couldnt go buy any thing to the very end of our shift and it would all be sold out and hoarded by then. It was a pretty good call since we sold PALLETS of it in the matter of just a few hours, even with a "2 packs per customer" limit. So it LITERALLY saved my a*s.

#27

Meterman doing install on a big barn on a big ranch. The linemen hadn’t even pulled in the line yet. So dead, right? Turns out there were two big barns and the second one was going to be fed from this one. The journeyman I was with could hear a motor running off in the distance. I couldn’t hear it but to be safe he checked the voltages. The motor he heard was a generator tied to the other barn almost 1/4 mile away.

#28

Bringing tums with me, for any s**y occasion! Never know when acid reflux will strike and ruin any enjoyment.

Image credits: TheFurrosianCouncil

#29

Throwing a socket wrench and a spark plug socket into the trunk of my car. Already saved my a*s twice.

#30

I’ve carried a spare car key in my wallet for years and it’s saved me a few times.

#31

Got the $100 insurance to cover any damages to a rental truck I got to drive from denver to Los Angeles. I hit a bollard pretty badly, and did a lot of damage so I’m really glad I paid that extra $100 up front. Stupid 19 year old me was so smart that day!! Not the day I hit the bollard.

#32

Didnt save my a*s. But I have chickens, and they are semi free range. They are usually allowed to be let loose in the back yard to graze and do chicken stuff.

One day, it was a really dreary day and i wasn't sure if letting them out was a good idea. Even though the weather said the chance of a storm was minimal. Well we had a storm, and it took down a ton of branches that were right in the middle of my chickens fav spots to hang out. So my "Just to be safe" mindset probably kept them from being killed by falling branches.

#33

Not buying more Bitcoin during the worst possible time to buy Bitcoin.

#34

I guess my most recent was getting a colonoscopy last month. I’m in my thirties, but both brother and uncle have died from colon cancer, so I’m supposed to get them every five years. Nearly didn’t do it this year (I really hate them), but they found and removed some precancerous polyps. 👍🏼 The prep was less arduous this time as well, so all together, not a bad experience!

#35

Remove a mole. Ended up being precancerous.

#36

I always double lock my car because I know I might forget. And last week, the car next to mine was robbed and mine was locked, thank God.

Image credits: KassandraMaMasito

#37

**TLDR: This is a story bordering paranormal but if you have the time…**

Driving early one Saturday morning about 7am cruising through an otherwise “dead” time of an old downtown area traffic I see a few people standing the road wearing safety vests. As I approach I see it’s a Radio Show local cancer fundraiser. For some reason, I got a strong feeling M was telling me to turn around and donate.

M and I were close, our wives are cousins, and he had died a few years earlier at a young age from testicular cancer, never seeing his 25th Bday. I was only 29 at the time driving through this fundraiser.

So what the heck, I had like $120 to my name that morning and, much to my wife’s chagrin I was already gambling today in desperation, I circled the block to return and toss $20 in the bucket in his memory. M was a well loved radio DJ in my hometown and his station did a similar fundraiser for him and his family back when. Was it just an emotional tug, just a hunch? It felt like he literally said to turn around in my ear as if he was in the passenger seat. So I proceed to turn right and circle around the block while fishing out my wallet to re-approach.

As I was approaching the stoplight at the fourth right turn of my circle slowly the light turns green and I’m ready to make the turn to approach the same way as I did on my first pass and again, a strong intuitive feeling to “STOP”. So I stopped on a green light. The car behind me lays on his horn pissed as he panic stops behind me.

Just then two street racers 100+mph I didn’t even see until it could’ve been too late whizz past my front bumper, zoom zoom. Had I made the turn on the green like a prudent driver, I’d been dead. Had Honkytonk followed close behind me he’d likely been tangled up in the madness. He simply let off the horn then waved out his window like an apology thinking I must had seen them coming. I never saw the racers before they were in front of my bumper and stopping on a green was strictly intuitive. As if M in the passenger seat said “you better stop here.” In fact I hadn’t even noticed Honkytonk zip up behind me.

However Mr. Honkytonks blaring horniness behind me alerted the radio volunteers standing in the street to look our way down the block and they were able to run from the road narrowly escaping the path of the race where the two cars were trying to pass the other on the two lane road taking all of the road and that short downtown block at that speed gave less than 2seconds for them to react.

Not sure why I thought M spoke to me that morning but I listened both times and if Mr Honkytonk hadn’t been behind me with his quick reflex on the horn it was a perfect set-up for a final destination mass casualty event one way or another on a quiet Saturday morning in downtown of decent folks trying to raise some money for a local family trying to survive their cancer journey. But the circle, the horn, the early alert allowed all of us to stay out of harms way. They street volunteers were still shaken up when I approached to give $20 and make sure they were okay and my phone rings. I pull away and answer the phone and it’s my wife saying “you should come home, something is wrong and I want you safe.” Yea, you’re a little late to that life insurance check.

You’d think it should end there but…
Truth be told it was a rough year, my kid had multiple surgeries, bills mounting and financially and I didn’t have the money to donate. And I withdrew my last liquid cash to go hit some garage sales trying to find a thrill of the hunt score I could turn into a quick profit to get me through to next payday. It was a gamble but one I’d done before making money stretch beyond life’s tests. It was nearing end of fall season so sales were hit and miss but I ended up at a sale with some cool toys from my childhood and I wanted them all but couldn’t afford to put a dent in the guys collection. Him and I started exchanging down on luck stories and he says, I need $80 to keep the power on for my kids, it’s the only reason I’m selling, it’s cold and I don’t want to be out here and it’s breaking my heart. You want them, Make me an offer. To which I replied, I got $100 to my name, literally, I want it all but I know better. Good luck and I’m sure someone will come by with a reasonable offer. The guy begged me to buy all for $80 keep $20 for gas. Well my company car had gas covered. It felt dirty but I knew I could flip them for 3-4x at least in my time of need so I said $100 for all as he was insistant. I start loading the toys into my car and the guy and his kid bring out black garbage bags to me and I’m like “what’s this??” The rest of his collection I had t even seen. He said “all”. No… stop… way too dirty of a deal… back up. My moral compass can’t handle this. Sell the rest for more but he insisted and I loaded the trunk and back seat of my car with vintage Star Wars collectibles and toys, many on cards still… By the following week I cleared $1500 and barely made it through 20% of the collection and it was killing me I couldn’t afford to keep them all but it was starting to clear past due medical bills and the windfall I desperately needed. My wife nearly divorced me for buying toys with our last liquid cash but quickly got over her disapproval. The following Saturday about 40% through the collection selling on ebay, I drove by the guys duplex again and knocked on the door. He answered and I handed him a wad of cash. He recognized me and was like what is this?? I said we both needed blessings that day and it was a weird day, but use this for rent or whatever other catch up you need. He tried to refuse it but just as stubborn as he was to give me thousands of dollars worth of a collection for $100 I too, was stubborn on giving him back a fair chunk if I were an honest dealer. Dude started crying and hugging me in appreciation. I am driving away and see a yard sale a mile or so away. We’re now pretty well past garage sale season now but I stop, and there is an original GIJoe collection from my youth for sale. Two large bins of loved/used loose toys. Not as lucrative as the SW but for another $100 I took a chance. I spent weeks matching guns and gear to original figures and while I didn’t need to sell these after Star wars win I still had bills to pay and just gave away my house payment equivalent in cash to a stranger because the last deal was too good. GIJoe made me work for it but I made a few bucks and all worked out well.

RIP M, thanks for the shout out that day!

#38

For some reason I stuffed a towel in my shoulder bag. Then my water bottle opened by itself and the only reason it didn’t ruin most of the stuff inside my bag was the d**n towel.

It was the first time ever I stuffed a towel on my bag. I still don’t know why I did that and yet it paid off.

#39

In the military, had supervisors out to screw me over, but I kept meticulous records. Whenever they tried to throw me under the bus, I always had the paperwork to back my play.

#40

All work related but asking extra questions on things like wires has saved my a*s multiple times... Finding out it was money laundering or savings someone from being scammed. Super rewarding. I've learned that whenever I have a gut feeling it's 9/10 times right and to look into it further.

#41

Not crazy but it probably saved me some $

Got a call from a friend two hours away from home, she broke down. It’s 10pm, it’s raining, she’s got little ones with her, it’s a mess. Set out to go find her broke down in BFE nowhere with my fiance, and he told me hey when’s insurance due? I checked my GEICO alp and it was actually due that week. Paid. Sweet. Found my friend and got her car fixed enough to run, put her and the kids in the working vehicle with me and I’ll drive them home my finance is following. I’m not 5 minutes from her house and I got flashy red and blue. Got pulled over. Thankfully I’d just paid my insurance and I got let off with a warning for going 38 in a 35. The cop was totally looking for a reason and I’m glad I had none for a ticket.

#42

Not me but a good friend, age old story. He was with a chick who left him for a few weeks. Shows back up and “becomes pregnant” within the first 2 months. When the baby is delivered “early” he refused to sign the birth certificate right away. She left him after a week or 2 after she got out of the hospital. Got back with the guy she left him for. She sued for child support and he demanded a DNA test. He was found to not be the father. A few years later we see the other guy randomly and he comes up to my buddy. Come to find out they had planned the whole thing. They wanted him to sign the certificate and try to milk him for child support.

#43

Seat belt. I rarely wore one. On night I had that exact thought go through my head, just to be safe. Drunk driver hit me and I would've gone flying through my windshield.

#44

I never got insurance on my rental cars. But back in June I was in the Cayman Islands and thought “different country. Might as well.” Got in a car accident.

#45

Buying ticket insurance for Amtrak and insurance for my hotel reservation.

#46

I wiped one more time.

#47

Using a c****m with my long-time partner after he had unprotected s*x with a new partner. She had only ever been with two other men, said she hadn’t personally been tested, but that they both told her they had been tested and were clear.

I was like, dude, that is waaay too many layers of trust for people I haven’t even met. I’ve gotta trust you to trust her to trust two dudes on what they said to get s*x? Umm, no. C****m s*x for us until you’ve gone through a several week’s long incubation period and get tested.

They both had chlamydia.

#48

Met up with random girl at a concert and she was really looking for fun time and everything before leaving with her and saying by to her friends I checked social media and not only was she married but he was a state trooper… nope not opening that can of worms.

#49

Put on my safety glasses and then like 2 seconds later some f****r threw a chestnut directly at my eye. Might’ve saved my vision because it was a direct hit.

#50

Paying the insurance for some snowmobile rentals. I flipped it on a patch of hidden ice on a hill and broke a mirror so it was just 15 dollars instead of a few hundred.

#51

Always bring an extra c****m ! Used to keep just one c****m in my wallet and had an insanely hot coworker willing to hookup during work. Took out the c****m and she helped put it on but it broke and I didn't have a spare so she told me that next shift we'll try again. She ended up quitting and I never saw her again after that.

Image credits: anon

#52

Brought a pashmina (scarf) to a rave I went to. I figured it would be too hot as the day went on but wanted it just in case since it was raining a little.

The top I was wearing was really low cut (pretty much open) and held together with chain. Halfway through a set I felt my top move out of place. I looked down and it had completely broken and was falling off. Took that pash out so quickly and made a makeshift top with it. If I wouldn’t have had it with me I would’ve had to walk around with just pasties on (and thank god I wore those too) to buy a shirt somewhere. I’m sure no one would’ve cared but I wasn’t comfortable at all with that. 🙈😅.

#53

An extra $20 in my sock.

#54

Packing a more comfortable/practical pair of shoes for my SO.

#55

Every time I bought insurance.

#56

My PC power supply AC, that thing explode internally on a storm that caused high voltage, My power regulator fried itself to save My TV and screen but something went wrong and the remaining voltage just passed onto My PC, the AC took the hit saving a LOT of money and My Job at the time.

#57

A friend picked me up for a road trip. As we are leaving town I notice there is a gallon zip lock bag in the door with probably 2" across the bottom of Mitsubishi E*****y. He said they were his friends and he must've left them; that he'd return them when we got back. I didnt feel right about them being in my door so I told him I wanted to hide them. We stopped and I looked around the car for a place to stash what was probably close to ten thousand dollars worth of E. I saw there was a place the seat had separated from the stitching to the cushion underneath so I flattened the pills out with the bag folded in half and pushed them up in there, carefully spreading them out as I did. When I was done, no bulge or nothing, I was happy with it and we got on the road. We had driven about 2 hours and was getting off the freeway and bam, cop lights us up. We pull into a gas station, they said we were acting suspicious (I was nervous as f**k and so was he). They pull us out, handcuff us and make us stand in front of the car. They search the entire car, find nothing and we got released. I was like 18 or 19 when that happened and when I have a gut instinct, I listen. I'd probably still be in prison two and half decades later.

#58

Counting condoms after s*x, once left one inside.

#59

Having some Dude Wipes on hand during a rather, uh...."interesting " bathroom mishap, let's just say. 🙄.

#60

Concealed carry. Probably the most common answer but true nonetheless.