When people meet a new acquaintance at a party or social gathering, the inevitable question always seems to pop up: “So, what do you do for a living?” In polite society, this query is typically answered in a few words or sentences, at most. So how much do we really know about what our fellow humans actually do for a paycheck?
To get to the bottom of this mystery, self-proclaimed America’s Favorite Icon Designer Louie Mantia tweeted earlier this week: “What‘s something that seems obvious within your profession, but the general public seems to misunderstand?”
What‘s something that seems obvious within your profession, but the general public seems to misunderstand?
— Louie Mantia, Jr. (@Mantia) July 1, 2018
Mantia probably wasn’t expecting the post to blow up the way it did, which was replied to and retweeted thousands of times on Twitter as people clamored to enlighten the masses with the realities of their professions—many of them, inherently sarcastic in nature—as you can see in just a few of the random responses below.
https://twitter.com/vornietom/status/1014020279675187200
Cold weather does not cause 'flu https://t.co/TiiPl3JKMe
— Duchess of Healing (@sindivanzyl) July 3, 2018
women like sports https://t.co/LOun9Yswql
— haley (@haleyosomething) July 2, 2018
Ancient Aliens played no role in any ancient civilization, and saying otherwise is racist https://t.co/P8EMGNOJSI
— Dr. Sarah Parcak (@indyfromspace) July 2, 2018
A lot of the answers unsurprisingly came from journalists or those working in digital media, many of whom echoed each others sentiments.
https://twitter.com/ParkerMolloy/status/1013816366695055365
The author of an article does not usually write the headline of the article https://t.co/1s9oxni4Yc
— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) July 2, 2018
Journalists don't write the headlines to their stories. Something that has caused me difficulty with interviewees over the years. https://t.co/9EsFpyxr76
— jon ronson (@jonronson) July 3, 2018
https://twitter.com/ChuckWendig/status/1013815865496801281
https://twitter.com/dannynett/status/1013755438888837120
https://twitter.com/Scaachi/status/1014154564021338112
There were also plenty of responses from computer or game programmers:
https://twitter.com/alicegoldfuss/status/1013919465883357185
We actually like video games and want them to be better. https://t.co/y8MgdOJjeX
— Kirk McKeand (@MckKirk) July 3, 2018
Buggy games are almost never QA's fault. It's deadlines or tech limitations, nearly every time. https://t.co/w8vFvd5r4D
— Aura (MOOMANIBE@Cohost) (@MOOMANiBE) July 2, 2018
During development, most video games aren't especially fun and look very basic: It all comes together at the end. If we're not showing to the public it's because what we'd show wouldn't impress you. If a game is delayed, trust me, you didn't want to play the non-delayed version. https://t.co/fVH46CtZU7
— Dan Lowe (@danlowlows) July 2, 2018
My job isn't just to make a game pretty, I must make it playable. If rules can't be read, icons can't be seen, or colors can't be distinguished, then no one's gonna play the game. An accessibility improvement for 5% of the population actually benefits 100% of the population. https://t.co/KEjmk6lDtX
— Daniel Solis (@DanielSolis) July 2, 2018
And then there was a fair share of funny or absurd responses:
There is no god. Adults shouldn’t have imaginary friends. Celebrate the here and now, cherish your friends and loved ones, don’t waste your life – it’s the only one you get. Chase vital existence not spiritual pipe dreams. https://t.co/Q6oqPJmVst
— The Church Of Satan (@ChurchofSatan) July 2, 2018
Gays have one job and it is tweeting. https://t.co/GqYoQ41paG
— Gabe González (@gaybonez) July 2, 2018
LOL EVERYTHING https://t.co/64COaR0f06
— Rita Meade (@ScrewyDecimal) July 2, 2018
Hopefully, we’ve cleared all of that up now. As the saying goes, be kind to one another, because you never know what bullshit someone is dealing with at work.