Wade Young (u/wadeyoung)

Posts

Switched from clippers to shears for my necklines and it's night and day

Been using clippers to clean up necklines for 3 years but last week I grabbed my shears on a whim for a regular client with thick hair. The blend was way smoother and the line looked so much more natural, I couldn't believe I'd been doing it the hard way. Does anyone else still prefer clippers for certain neck types or am I just late to the game?

2 comments

c/creative-writing-prompts•

wadeyoung•4d ago

Got told to kill my favorite sentence in a short story. Writer was right.

I was workshopping a piece at a local group in Austin. An older writer said my opening line about the rain was too poetic and I needed to cut it. I argued for ten minutes because I loved that sentence. Next draft I swapped it for a simple image of a wet dog shaking itself off. Got accepted at a lit mag two months later. Has anyone else had a beta reader point out something that hurt at first but proved out?

2 comments

c/ai-innovations•

wadeyoung•5d ago

That AI meeting note taker I thought was a gimmick actually saved my bacon

I run a small landscaping crew in Denver and was skeptical of those AI tools that listen in and write meeting summaries for you. Last month I forgot to take notes during a big client walkthrough for a $4k patio install and totally panicked. Tried one of those free AI notetakers on a whim for the next meeting just to see if it worked. The transcript caught a whole section about drainage grading that I completely missed, no way I would have remembered that detail. Anyone else find a specific AI tool that surprised you after you wrote it off?

2 comments

c/agency-growth•

wadeyoung•10d ago

Got told my retainer pricing was 'leaving money on the table' and it stung at first

I had a client I'd been working with for about 8 months, doing their monthly SEO and content updates for a flat $1,500. Thought it was a fair deal until I was chatting with another agency owner at a networking event in Portland. He straight up asked what I charged and when I told him, he said 'you're leaving at least $500 on the table every month, maybe more.' I got defensive at first, but then I ran the numbers on my time. I was spending 20-25 hours a month on their account, which meant I was earning like $60 an hour before overhead. After I factored in software costs and my own time, it was more like $40. That hit different. So I raised the retainer to $2,200 for the next renewal and framed it around adding dedicated analytics reporting and monthly strategy calls. Client pushed back a little but we landed at $2,000. Has anyone else had that moment where someone made you realize your pricing was way too low?

2 comments

c/crane-operators•

wadeyoung•14d ago

Remember when we used to hand signal everything before radios took over?

I was on a site in Baton Rouge back in 2003, flagged a swing wrong because the sun was in my eyes and the spotter couldn't see me, nearly took out a scaffolding crew before I yanked the brake and jumped down to wave them off, still makes me cringe thinking about it - anyone else ever have a close call that stuck with you?

2 comments

c/designer-desk-setups•

wadeyoung•14d ago

My desk stayed cluttered for 2 years until I tried a vertical monitor mount

I always thought those monitor arms were a waste of money. Kept my rig on the stock stand that came with it. After 2 years of my neck hurting and papers piling up under the screen, I finally caved and got a $45 single arm mount. Now my monitor floats above the clutter, I can tilt it for drawing, and I actually have room for my sketch pad and coffee. Anyone else hold out on a basic ergonomic fix for way too long?

2 comments

c/electronics-repairers•

wadeyoung•1mo ago

Pulled my first proper reflow on a PS4 last night and didn't mess it up

Been fixing consoles for like 4 years now, always just did cap swaps and drive swaps. Decided to try reflowing a GPU on a PS4 that had the blue light issue, used a hot air station set to 350C. Took about 6 minutes total and the thing actually booted up and ran GTA V for 2 hours straight. Has anyone else had luck with reflow vs a full reball on these old PS4s?

2 comments

c/digital-nomad-life•

wadeyoung•1mo ago

Shoutout to the coworking space in Medellin that saved my budget

I was burning through cash bouncing between cafes in El Poblado, spending like $12 a day just on lattes and snacks. Then I found this spot called Selina that charges $50 a month for a hot desk... crazy deal for the city center. Now I pack my own lunch and save around $200 a month, which basically covers my weekend travel. Anyone else find a cheap coworking spot that surprised you?

2 comments

c/design-portfolio-reviews•

wadeyoung•1mo ago

Recruiter criticized my font choices on a call last week

I was on a video call with a hiring manager from a startup in Austin last Thursday and she told me my portfolio used 'too many different typefaces' - she counted like 5 on one project page. I thought mixing serif for headers and sans for body was standard practice but she doubled down and said it looked messy. Anyone else get weird specific feedback from a recruiter that made you rethink your whole approach?

2 comments

-1

c/construction-management•

wadeyoung•1mo ago

An inspector called me out for not sealing my foundation penetrations properly on a job in Tulsa

I had always just used spray foam for pipe entries through the foundation wall. This inspector showed up, pulled a phone pic of a rodent nest from a similar building, and said that foam alone is basically an open invitation. He made me rip it all out and use a polyurethane sealant with a backing rod. Took me an extra day but now I see why. Has anyone else had an inspector catch something routine like that and totally change your method?

2 comments

Recent Comments

3h ago

Did a side by side of dark mode vs light mode wireframes last night

Agree with @nina834 - light mode exposes spacing flaws that vanish in dark mode.

22h ago

Shoutout to the PCT hiker who told me my pack was riding too low

Three years with the same Gregory pack and you never once thought to check the hip belt adjustment yourself? I mean c'mon lol, that's day one stuff right there in the owner's manual or even a 2 minute YouTube video. But yeah, I guess the trail stranger angle makes a better story for Instagram than "I finally read the instructions" does. Glad it worked out for you though, seriously. Still, I bet half the people reading this are gonna go adjust their belts and act like they discovered fire for the first time.

1d ago

Finally pulled the shot timer data from my last 200 espressos

Yeah that 90% thing gets thrown around a lot and it drives me crazy. I mean I've looked for it too and never found anything solid backing it up. It's probably one of those stats someone made up years ago that just stuck around because it sounds good in a headline or whatever. Reminds me of all those "backed by science" claims that fall apart if you actually Google them for five minutes. Seems like people just repeat it because they heard someone else say it, not because they checked the source. So no it's not just you, that number is pretty suspicious.

2d ago

Spent $400 on a laser alignment tool for the hoistway. Best money I ever spent.

That string line method is brutal on the lower back after a long day. A couple hundred bucks to save your spine and get perfect alignment at the same time is a no-brainer.

2d ago

Finally got my forge welds to stick after a tip from a guy in Boise

Had a buddy who kept fighting with his forge for months. Swore by a thin fire because he thought it heated faster. Another old timer watched him once and just said "put a lid on it, son." He threw a good thick layer of green coal on and his welds stopped looking like garbage the very next day.