Which skill is most useful? 39 skills ranked

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I am so grateful for any support you choose to give, financial or emotional! 🙏 A tier list of many of the skills I've learned on this channel

[@rajdeepghosh5364]

Alternate title: This week I learned how to make a tier list

[@PlanetComputer]

ok

[@satsuj3509]

ok

[@MrCommentGod]

ok

[@Backflipidiot]

Of course

[@zubrach5931]

Here before it blows

[@internetshaquille]

aggregating the lessons you've learned into one easy to digest format - S tier :)

[@PlanetComputer]

ok

[@recitationtohear]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aKTcYnariN92hbs Finally yes

[@JustcallmeJayrot]

Net Shaq in the wild!

[@aldiergreen]

learning how to use chickpeas - S tier

[@therealmatthew293]

Worlds collide

[@Saimeren]

I love that you're not afraid to put things in the C and D tiers. I love how honest you are about the skills and the videos about them.

[@thepandaman]

I've mentioned it before, but proper touch-typing is easily A or S-tier skill in this day and age. Being able to merrily tap away at the keyboard whilst maintaining eye contact with someone else, or just typing up notes is so useful, and surprisingly rare considering how ubiquitous QWERTY keyboards are.

[@jjperceval]

also a great way to show dominance if you make constant eye contact

[@NanoMan737400]

That's so useful and makes your life so much easier if you type a lot (or even from time to time). I'd argue that it's one of those skills you don't know you have if you are somewhat fast with the keyboard already

[@bailey125]

If you've used a keyboard for a very long time you dont even need to "touch type", you just move your fingers to the space where the keys you want are at. It's like touching your nose. You can't see it but you know exactly where it is.

[@Refoouse1]

mans just said ubiquitous

[@I_Mark_Mills]

I tried so hard to learn this, but just couldn't get it. Perhaps I should try again, since this comment has taken me 30 seconds to type

[@WerexZenok]

-'Let's classify skills by how useful they are' -'starts with a kickflip and gives it an A tier'

[@jeremyrigdon7875]

And then breaking a glass is A tier too😭

[@adamsmith-bg5wq]

To be fair, there were 2 other scoring categories. But it did seem cool factor was weighted more than usefulness.

[@ITILII]

F Tier....as Useless as biden/harris....but not as potentially Harmful 😦

[@corestolmyhandle]

“Anyone can learn to wheelie on any bike” - I smell a new challenge. Need you to go ahead and wheelie on a penny farthing

[@Orbwn2]

That steampunk Abraham Lincoln is awesome!

[@GhostWriter_369]

🧸

[@JackHansonXJ-Man1x5PeaceX]

Lmao!

[@mickb1470]

Honestly it could be done if you rode the penny farthing backwards. Considering how big the wheel is, it would be difficult. But most penny farthings are fixies, so I think you're onto something!

[@rowanswatling3766]

I think breath holding was S, there’s so many applications for lung capacity, these go past just swimming (which depending on where you live can be incredibly useful as well) but still, been a few years since I found your channel, and I look forward to see what you learn next!

[@logansmith3474]

I think it might be semi useful but idk how he said it’s cooler than axe throwing 😂

[@shieldmate7444]

He probably had good lung capacity when he started to learn it, the skill was more about self control for him I think, he learned it too quickly.

[@anakinlowground5515]

It's C tier easily. Axe throwing is way cooler, so it should be B or A tier.

[@rowanswatling3766]

@@anakinlowground5515 eh, axe throwing is cool but nearly useless, I mean I was raised in a logging family and my town used to have this festival where everyone would participate in competitions, and axe throwing was one of them. It’s fun I guess but easily learned and you can never use it, seeing someone do it after you’ve seen it before is meh. Holding your breath will never get old for me, I’ve been working on it but a close family friend can hold his breath for a bit over 5 minutes and it’s astounding. He goes free diving/spear fishing and it’s awesome. Not to mention makes things like circle breathing (music) easier. It’s just purely useful, and some of its uses are really cool.

[@daano465]

The boxer Lomachenko (one of the best in his weightclass), uses a lot of unconventional techniques in his trainingschedule. He also holds his breath for a long time because it apearently boosts his stamina a lot for when hes in the ring.

[@garyking1986]

Honestly the fire skill is the most impressive to me. It’s such a primitive skill that we’ve founded our civilisation on. It could save your life.

[@FirstnameLastname-vf9rp]

it could also end your life

[@44r0n-9]

most likely it won't though lol

[@jacobshirley3457]

@@44r0n-9 Which person are you replying to, lol?

[@44r0n-9]

@@jacobshirley3457 OP obviously

[@marekss]

am i the only one who thinks its useless? how hard is it to grab a lighter or a fire starting kit with you when going camping or on a trip?

[@MedlifeCrisis]

Absolutely loved this dude. Looks like I need to buy a Rubik's cube and drink all the wine in the house before I destroy our glasses

[@justapersonwithaphone9310]

Medlife crisis! Wow, it's great to see you elsewhere, I'm a big fan

[@ggccvvck]

Solving a Rubik’s cube isn’t hard, it’s memorizing how to solve it.

[@joshua6.6.9]

@@ggccvvck yeah it's very easy and fun

[@tekrunner987]

Learn how to do a coronary bypass with paperclips. I bet you'd woo your peers.

[@GhostWriter_369]

🧸

[@EScoGo920]

When you get good at skiing, then you are able to zoom down fun mountains at 30 miles per hour. That rush of speed is what I love about skiing. One of my favorite sports.

[@TheMuro22]

The skiing thing - it's really subjective. I live in a cold country, and when you know how to do it, it can be extremely satisfying. It also has some utility- you can get backcountry skis and slap some skins on them and walk (the most effective mode of human powered transportation in deep snow), it's basically hiking in winter but prettier and you don't have to walk down - you simply ski. But it can get pretty expensive and unaffordable - especially when you don't live in a very cold country.

[@H3m3n3x]

When you don't use the sticks it's like flying.

[@griffintaylor3861]

This is where I am too, I don't ski often because I don't have the time, but I live in Alberta. It's always snowy and cold anyways so that's not an issue. You usually are dressed up halfway to what you would be while skiing anyways. So if you live nowhere near snow I can see it being annoying, but if you live with winter conditions often then it makes no sense tot to try it a couple times.

[@pennryan970]

Yeah I was shocked that was so low.... It's so useful.

[@danp2509]

@@pennryan970 for people that live in the uk, its only useful on holiday, mike's experience was probably a bit ruined by Kim getting injured quite early on their trip. Mike, if u read this, try ski bikes kzbin.info/www/bejne/a6ncpamOhryCetE

[@blackatleftismyt5001]

Skiing is sooo fun

[@francescomezza]

Imagine learning so many skills that you can actually rank them

[@JohnnyBGSkills]

He's the first! There are at least 20 of us skill enthusiasts in the niche and my tier list is gonna be such a pain in ass 😂

[@apollo1694]

You can too. Language, walking, running, jumping, etc. Just because you don't learn arbitrary and rarely used skills for the sake of cool doesn't mean you don't have any.

[@JohnnyBGSkills]

@@apollo1694 Everyone has skills of all kinds for sure!

[@Abstract_zx]

heres a skill i learned recently that i think is important for anyone in a field involving lots of math: learning to more quickly do arithmetic with large integers in your head (or on paper with no calculator, rapidly) and certain tricks for factorizing, multiplying, dividing, and raising numbers to certain powers, with the use of calculators being common alot of people seem to lose this skill and in some situations it can be faster than searching for a calculator to figure out what 21^3 is (9261) or can be used when you dont have a calculator immediately on hand i had the idea to do this when i realized my math professor was shockingly fast at doing these types of calculations in his head like it was nothing EDIT: i put some tips on the replies but ultimately im not perfect at it and im still in the process of learning it myself, if anyone else has something i wasnt aware of feel free to tell me about it

[@nicjansen230]

when do you not have a calculator on hand where you need one? only in some exams. since smartphones became a thing, the only time when i have no calculator on hand when driving a car/bicycle/.../sailboat, and i don't need a calculator while doing it (obviously, you shouldn't be distracted by calculating when you drive a car or bicycle... and i'm not taking my phone with me on my sailboat since it could get wet, get smashed, sink and so on) is lightningfast arithmetic impressive? yes. will it be a problem if you need a calculator for 63+28=91? yes. so learn what you think you need to learn, but *the most important thing to do is to keep asking yourself "does this make sense?"*

[@yeLLK]

Could you elaborate on how you learnt to? I would love to be able to do quick arithmetic with larger numbers. I used to be able to solve math in my head really quickly but the skill died when I reached the "calculator" level classes and it died even further because of exam anxiety, when I would double check simple calculations just so I wouldn't lose marks on silly mistakes. I would appreciate it if you show me a starting point to learn it again!

[@sahibjotsingh8238]

Seconded, my math teacher made us not use calculators so I had to learn how to do a lot of calculation mentally o by hand. It makes you better math, and it makes you faster as you dont have go over to the calculators every couple of seconds.

[@magnus882]

Can you recommend and resources for this?

[@Abstract_zx]

some of the main resources for this are -practice (number 1 key) -learn divisibility rules (michael from vsauce created an easy guide for all the single-digit ones, these can allow you to separate numbers and make them easier to work with, learning about modular arithmetic and mod classes can also help here for non-single-digit factors and make it easier to simplify large fractions) -learning to visualize on-paper multiplication, addition, and division in your head and keep track of it mentally (a big key to this is getting over the fear of getting it wrong or losing track, more practice = more accuracy) -using techniques from algebra and applying them to simple numeric math (like FOIL, the perfect square trinomial (a+b)^2=a^2+2ab+b^2 and binomial/trinomial theorem for raising 2 and 3 digit numbers to certain powers, it really makes it easy because it allows you to square, cube, and multiply single digit numbers and add them together to square and cube 2 and 3 digit ones) (this is how i mentally computed 21^3, (a+b)^3=a^3+3a^2b+3ab^2+b^3 where a=20 and b=1 and you add all the terms together mentally, also for these techniques you dont always need to use exact digits, for something like 39 its easier to use a=40 and b=-1) -another big key is to stop second-guessing yourself at every step, sometimes youll get things wrong but with time youll get more accurate and second-guessing and stepping back to double-check can cause you to completely lose track all these techniques can be learned fast but it takes practice to do them quickly

[@Oblisk]

Although breath holding might seem not as useful on a day-to-day basis, it actually translates to your regular subconscious breathing as it helps increase your CO2 tolerance helping your body’s need for oxygen, especially during aerobic exercise

[@roaaba9512]

S Wheelies Solving a Rubik’s cube Programming in Javascript A Shattering wine glass with your voice Bunny hops The umbrella trick Solving a rubik’s cube blindfolded Sabering champagne with a wine glass Making fire Dotting lines on a chalkboard Riding a bike upstairs Picking a lock with paper clips Swimming in cold water Knowing what day of the week any date lands on B Kickflip Holding breath for 4 mins Stacking dice Splitting an apple in half with your bare hands Riding bike rollers Learning to Manual Spinning a basketball Muscle ups C Backwards brain bike Axe throwing Bullwhip Card springs Finding water in the forest Penny farthing The tablecloth trick The salmon ladder Cracking a safe Learning to juggle Learning to unicycle Slingshot D Backflip Crank flips Memorizing a 100 digits of pi Skiing Learning to shoot

[@IDontLikeHandlesWithNumbers]

You're an absolute legend and no one even said anything about this comment.

[@kennywickham13]

You shouldve done it in a 3 way venn diagram with each circle being: Easiness, Coolness, Usefullness

[@KnightFox1000]

No, cause things are not that binary. Things are not either easy or hard, either cool or not cool. There are middle terms.

[@nuptvalorant1494]

@@KnightFox1000 aren't you fun

[@alexpower742]

🤣

[@44r0n-9]

@@KnightFox1000 According to his comments in the video that's exactly what it is.

[@jacobshirley3457]

Sure, but tier-lists are simply trendy.

[@jordanbroadhead7388]

Learning to climb to certain difficulty would be a fun challenge. Or trying a "dyno" at a climbing gym. Its basically a big jump to the next hold. Its usually not that physically difficult but requires some technique and full commitment

[@franciss2529]

Climbing to 6b indoors would be a good one, as (especially on slab) it's definitely more about skill and technique than strength. Using climbing technique helped me get through a window of my house when I got locked out! Getting to 7a has taken me a year or so, definitely a more long term skill, but worth it for sure.

[@lilyofluck371]

@@franciss2529 Learn to climb or learn to pick locks. Apparently they both let you in your home 😂🥰

[@andeolevain]

@@franciss2529 7a in a single year? That's impressive! Congratulations! May I asked how often you were training, and how long each session was?

[@franciss2529]

@@andeolevain Thank you! Long response incoming... I started climbing in October 2020 and already had a bit of talent for it. I'm mainly a cyclist but did some rock climbing as a little kid. I was able to manage 5a climbs at the hardest from the beginning. I did some climbing once or twice a week, mostly bouldering, sometimes outdoors, until December. I was climbing at around 5c when another 'c***d' Lockdown hit. I couldn't climb at all for 2-3 months actually, so I just cycled and did some hiking. Going back, I got a membership to my gym and I went 2 or 3 times a week, 2 hours each session. Over Summer I did 3 sessions per week pretty consistently. I got to 6b soon enough with a bit of easy hangboarding practice here and there. I realised my best climbs are crimpy slabs, which I enjoy doing and projecting. Just a few weeks ago I did my first 7a at my local gym, whose grading seems pretty fair (compared with the 3 other gyms I've been to). It was a corner climb which just seemed right for me. I'm not sure I'd give it 7a though, but hey, I'll take it. I think given a year, most people who have the build for climbing and can go 3 times per week for 2 hours each session should be able to get to ~7a just by enjoying it and going along. Find your strengths and do use them, but also train your limiters too. Climbing outdoors has really helped me appreciate other styles of climbing; I reckon I'm best at sport climbing really and I'm eager to do more of it. Just enjoy it and have fun. Try to stay consistent and not give up- you'll have bad days, but they only make the good days feel even better! Try all sorts of climbing if you can and keep at it!

[@j.gonzalez2543]

I think that is pretty far from the scope of this channel. Every climb is unique and doing it is not a "skill". It would be like "learning how to win a chess game"

[@KingKing-hl5ve]

This guy is the definition of working hard gives results. Happy New Year Everyone 🎉

[@JohnnyBGSkills]

Facts. Skill learning is fun but it really takes a lot out of you. Believe me. Happy new year! 🌎🔥⚡

[@fionn5305]

During Covid I learnt the Rubik cube 3x3 then I was able to do it blindfold and in front of friends and neighbors on the Queens 70year celebration after consuming a bottle of wine, I did the 3x3 cube blindfolded in 13 seconds and I am 70 years of age. I am now this week learning (but slowly) the 5x5. My very young neighbor told me about you today. I am fascinated by your channel so the first I am going to view "How To Stop Quitting" I know I am going to learn something here. Great to meet/see you Mike Boyd! THANKS

[@Aethelhadas]

Thats impressive and great on you to continue onto harder cubse. Ive never seen the appeal before but this inspires me now.

[@Blazik3n99]

As someone who spent years speedsolving Rubik's cubes, I'm really happy to see that Mike is still so enthusiastic about learning to solve one! It's a great hobby.

[@OvereatenPotato]

Same here! I’ve spent 6 years cubing and still not tired of it!

[@QUABLEDISTOCFICKLEPO]

He talked me into it. HIs enthusiasm convinced me to buy one, and the instructions, of course.

[@Blazik3n99]

@@QUABLEDISTOCFICKLEPO Good luck! Even just learning to solve it feels great. If you're enjoying it, keep at it and your times will go down :) I was pretty slow to improve compared to most but I still managed to get down to a 16 second average - it feels incredible to see yourself improve.

[@quabledistocficklepo3597]

@@Blazik3n99 Thanks for reminding me. I'm ordering one from Amazon. right NOW.

[@2idiots2muchtime]

It was so cool looking back through these with your perspective. I didn't realize just how many you had inspired me to learn (lockpicking, card throwing, apple splitting, open water swimming, doomsday) and now I'm feeling reminded of my love for learning new skills. Mike, you're a legend. Really appreciate you showing us it's possible!

[@alessandro9609]

The thing with skiing is that while you're learning it you'll hate it like its the last thing you'll ever want to pick up again but when you feel confident enough to start getting some speed while retaining control of your direction and everything, it feels so much more fun. I learned to ski in the last week, took me about 3 days to get decent and the speed at which you can get better too is abnormal. You can instantly gain more control and tips by looking at other people. I think it's really fun, especially if skiing with friends. But I will agree, while learning it definitely doesn't feel worth the prep time.

[@ianhermansson7191]

Skiing I think is easy to pick up but hard to master

[@RyanLynch1]

yeah the community aspect is really big

[@pascalwiery7129]

I live close to moutains and i've been skiing (almost) every year since i was like 7 years old, so im pretty good at it now. Skiing down a mountain with easily more than 100 km/h while you are only on the edges of the skis because you are in a curve is so satisfying. I absolutely love it, its easily my favourite hobby

[@-Eternal-Damnation-]

I'm a ski Instructor and I agree, it's so much fun but a TERRIBLE career choice :')

[@adamzalevich750]

might be worse for him since he isn't as used to -30 temperatures as most Scandinavians and Canadians are too

[@Sohcahtoa82]

Surprised that popping the champagne bottle open with a sabre or champagne glass isn't S tier. Easy to learn, people love it, and it's useful.

[@ApexHerbivore]

Seriously?! It's not useful at all. Champagne bottles don't need a corkscrew: you can open them easily by hand and you have zero clean up of broken glass. It's purely novelty value

[@appa609]

It's absolutely useless unless you're a circus performer it's not an effective way to open a wine bottle

[@mareknovotny5441]

I actually opened a glass bottle with pasta sauce since I was unable to open it. Had to remove the top layer tho since there is not the same presure as it is in champagne, but was really surprised it worked even on bottle that huge.

[@prathamsrivastava1367]

List of useful skills here : for health : breath hold, cold swim, for fitness : muscle up, back flip, juggling, for brain : memorizing, making tier list, for social reasons : apple splitting, c for rare situations : slingshot, shooting, find water, make fire, picking locks, cracking safe, these will enhance your life in other areas also. others are recreational activities just like rubics cube, or show off acts like glass breaking

[@UnsolicitedThoughtsOfARose]

6:42 memorized 402 digits for a contest in middle school and 7+ years later I can still mindlessly recite 150 digits ish. It’s just second nature like singing the ABC’s. Don’t know if I’ll ever forget all of it because I do it from time to time without thinking about it. It almost feels like muscle memory, if I say 3.14 the rest just flows out.

[@L4ngyAge]

How do you memorize the numbers? In couples of 1, 2, 3 or somrthing else?

[@TheMArcanjo]

just wanted to make a comment on Mike statement that learning to solve the rubiks cube will make your life better... i was at this job interview for an internship at Rolls-Royce of Brazil... the lady from the HR was asking me my greatest virtude and i said "I'm really good at learning things by myself... i taught myself english, i taught myself how to play guitar, i even taught myself on how to solve the rubiks cube"... she laughed and gave a cube... needless to say passed through the next stage, and later i got the job... it lasted until the company went bankrupt a few months later... but the cube helped me... a few months later from that story, there was this event at the college i went where there was this mini games... i can't remember what i did but this guy gave me a rubiks cube... so i asked him "what do i get for solving the rubiks cube?" the guy promply said "a mouse"... and so it was and i used that mouse for a few years... it was one of those mouses that resembles cars and have led in it... it was really cool at the time

[@KizeBae]

This is awesome Mike. Leggo more in 2022 💫

[@jamesoneill6362]

Love your channel!

[@KizeBae]

@@jamesoneill6362 🥰💫

[@pkos91]

Mike: "javascript is lightning fast!" CS majors: "REEEE"

[@hugohabicht6274]

You don't have to be a cs major to hate him for saying this...

[@j3sb7t]

REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[@john.dough.]

Well, computers nowadays are lightning fast, so most scripting languages are good enough for the casual programmer.

[@OneDerscoreOneder]

@@hugohabicht6274 I facepalm but I don’t hate him. That’s crazy

[@daninspace9009]

Me, rust enjoyer: *screams in agony*

[@KoHaGames_]

Snowboarding and skiing are the two most amazing ways to do sport I know of. If you're not a noobie you need about 15-30minutes to prepare. Maybe a bit more than for other kinds of sport, but who cares it's just awesome! And, those are also two of the most easy to learn skills. It's super easy to learn how to ski and it's even easier to learn how to snowboard. If you learn on one day, you can already start just improving on the next one. Everything you need, you can easily learn on one day

[@Jellysmake]

Personally I would put the bunny hop in S tier, its so useful because its the bass for anything on a bike other than pedals, and i find myself casually using it on a regular trip to the store even, just to get up and down a curb to avoid people on the sidewalks and crosswalks

[@btsgtlp7611]

This whole channel is an S tier channel. The content is amazing 👌. Im always delighted when you post a video

[@bjornekloo]

Shooting with a high zoom optic from a laying position is extremely easy. However, try shooting pistols or even rifles with no optics, it becomes so much harder and much more fun

[@Spunney]

THIS!

[@_-__.]

Add some moving targets like rabbits or birds becomes far harder if they're trying to escape without a shotgun very fun

[@Pallidum]

As a PRS shooter, the zoom level of the optics isn't nearly as important as the quality of the glass and the precision of the rifle. That said, the rifle Mike shot with mounted a vortex razor, which is a very nice mid-high range scope, on a good chassis bolt rifle. Pretty much easy mode. Shooting the same rifle from barricades or unconventional positions at much larger distances under time pressure and it's a whole different game.

[@magicturtle4765]

@@Pallidum As a fellow shooter I agree with you 100%. As a medical student I feel the need to call you sillihpys.

[@Pallidum]

@@magicturtle4765 Hahahaha.

[@calebbc3]

Could not agree more with everything you said about solving a Rubik’s cube. I learned about 2 months ago and now have one permanently on my desk at work to help keep occupied

[@FirstnameLastname-vf9rp]

yh, it blows people’s minds every time and once you’ve learnt it you’ve learnt it

[@publiclydeceased7630]

I recommend getting a 4x4 or 5x5. It's even more mind blowing but it barely takes any extra learning. Just a few extra algorithms and that's it

[@JarkaKavraizhkiYoutube]

Mike: “Don’t learn how to ski, learn how to mountain bike” Me, who’s skied basically my entire life, and also loves it more than anything: “I’m gonna pretend i didn’t see that”

[@shreya...007]

6:35 If just 100 digits is your goal, songs are the BEST method. Asap science taught me the song and years later, I still remember it. Same with the periodic table song.

[@MagicalMongoose]

I actually learned how to figure out the day of the week given any date because of your video! Its super cool, thank you :)

[@peytongraham8661]

Me too!

[@quantumphakt9264]

I think it should be S tier. I find it really cool, easy and useful

[@vvvsss796]

@@quantumphakt9264 yeah people think you're some sort of genius

[@ChristopherBonis]

NYE drinking challenge: Take a shot every time Mike says “extremely difficult.”

[@TheGreatCooLite]

L I M I T E D U T I L I T Y

[@loisnarag]

why did i read that with his accent AHAHAH

[@Mryellow098]

he said it as i read this comment.

[@eestaashottentotti2242]

When you spend 10 hours learning a skill successfully, its not exactly extremely diffiicult. I wonder, what he would say after learning to play an average Rachmaninoff piano concerto.

[@brandonwordmusic]

Umbrella deserved S tier! Easy, cool, practical, it excels in each!

[@FirstnameLastname-vf9rp]

cool? yes. practical? …

[@saikrishnanagandla7604]

i mean ......practical?

[@peterwolf4230]

Yeah but he cheated on that, the original video is overhand and looks much cooler

[@TheParkourFencer]

The one that got me hooked on the channel was the muscle up. I really enjoyed all the rest, but that sense of accomplishment and effort was inspiring and super hype. Not the flashiest, but one of the most impressive.

[@QUABLEDISTOCFICKLEPO]

I'm working on a simple chin-up.

[@ScoochCubing]

I learnt 100 digits of pi about a year ago because I was bored one day and I like numbers. Taught myself using my own method, which was just breaking up the numbers into lots of groups into patterns that I felt was easy to remember. I recite it to myself when I’m bored every now and then. I can still recite it today in about 10 seconds without even thinking. It’s just like the alphabet to me, second nature. I don’t show it off much but when I do the reactions are brilliant. If you don’t like numbers that much then I see why you wouldn’t bother learning it, but I would personally put it much higher than D tier. It is really fun to do and you can literally do it anytime, anywhere.

[@L4ngyAge]

Damn 2x2 pro solver memorizing 100 digits of pi, who would've thought?

[@dylangirouard]

Hey fellow cuber, in 6th grade my math text book had 50 digits of pi in the back, and one day I spent like 20 minutes memorizing them the exact same way (just breaking them up into 2-4 number intervals). Almost a decade later I can still recite them pretty much like muscle memory. Not really “useful” but I have impressed some people so I’ll call it a win.

[@warneby9892]

It's funny, I've always found the salmon ladder to have the opposite effect, not too hard to learn but it always would blow peoples minds

[@epauletshark3793]

Once you get technique down, it's fairly easy and a ton of fun.

[@Blobbyo25]

Same here, but I've always done a lot of pull-ups and grew up swinging and jumping between bars as a kid so it was never anything new to me. For people with less active and adventurous childhoods, I can see why it would be hard

[@appa609]

it's useful just because you get stronger by doing it.

[@elliotgregory1427]

The programmers in your audience thank you. Also that was an awesome video and I'm sure very eye opening for people who just dont or couldnt understand what we do. I'm so glad that you still do use the language, as coding is one of those always useful skills to have, especially in our modern age. So thanks

[@patrickbourne3819]

If you're ever thinking about doing the backflip again maybe you can try and get in contact with Nile Wilson. He's taught a lot of people how to do it on his KZbin channel and he's very open about the mental elements of gymnastics so I think it could make an interesting video for the both of you.

[@miskee11]

I used to be good at doing wheelies as a kid, but then I hit puberty and started strongman training and went from a 60 kg kid to a 150+ kg monster. Now whenever I try doing wheelies, the bike just instantly flips over. Wheelies get exponentially harder the more you weigh!

[@the_weezman]

On the learn to shoot one, all I can say is what made it not that fun was the fact you were prone, had a high zoom pre zeroed optic, didn't have a high rate weapon, and basically learned the bare minimum. If you can learn to shoot the same way with iron sites, you're mighty impressed with yourself. If you can see how quickly you can get target acquisition from the hip, that's fun. If you can see how quickly you can accurately mag dump a target, that's fun. If you can learn how to zero a scope using windage, distance, elevation, or even just some Kentucky windage, that's fun. Learning to shoot isn't hard. Mastering shooting isn't hard either, but it takes a lot of hours, thankfully they're fun hours. Obligatory I'm American statement.

[@ericcinsalant9525]

2022 skills ideas: Boomerang Two finger push up Train an animal (dog maybe) Speedrun a retro game Finger whistle Eat with your feet (ie not using your hands)

[@jeppgd5183]

It’s actually pretty cool too see all these videos again and shortly get reminded of the great that’s on this channel. It’s been awesome keeping updated with your channel over the years, I’m excited for more videos!

[@janewan1196]

I'm so sad to see backflip in F tier! Personally, I would put it in B tier -- it requires a lot of dedication, but it is worth it. From my experiences, these are my tips and defenses for learning a backflip: It is incredibly import to keep yourself safe. The biggest safety precaution you have is your fear. Always take advice from your fear, and be aware of how comfortable you are. Although this can make the process very slow, it keeps everything incredibly safe. For me, it took a month to do my first backflip on the trampoline and half a year to comfortably backflip on the ground. Although it took incredibly long, I never retained any injury for more than a few minutes. However, your fear must be broken at some point. When you decide to fully trust your body and commit to a backflip, make sure you FULLY commit. A half commitment is the most dangerous thing possible. Fear striking you in the middle of the air is what gave me worst injury and is also what stopped Mike from continuing his attempts. So, when you are sure you can fully trust yourself, make sure you completely set aside your fear. Lastly, I want to emphasize that backflips aren't as dangerous or as hard as people think -- they just require dedication. Mike, I encourage you to try again one more time. You would probably be able to learn it mush quicker than I did, but make sure not to rush if you do try. I bid you well, and thanks for the content! Now I know that I have to learn how to wheelie!

[@WlatPziupp]

@Poggers guy It's fun, cool as hell, fun exercise, great for getting in tune with the balance of your body, and learning it lets you master and overcome the fear of being upside down in the air. Skiing is fine and all but unless you love it it's useless

[@Minestrini]

If you can learn a back flip, i assure you can learn mostly everything physical wise. If you can handle that kind of fear everything else is a lot easier in prospective

[@samylemzaoui2298]

@Poggers guy i know more people who go to work on a unicicle than people who ever had a use for skis other than fun

[@Minestrini]

@Poggers guy ahahaha True, first Time i went to sky i didn't know how to stop myself correctly. People thought i was good because i was going fast down the track but in reality i was scared shitless and was praying to make it down super fast ahahah

[@user-uq1fq6gs3i]

It is completely useless and absolutely nobody read that essay.

[@GamesForNoobs]

The backwards brain bike is actually REALLY useful because it can't be stolen!! You are the only one who can ride it so if someone tries to use it, it will be useless to them b/c they wont know how to ride it

[@77elite9]

But won’t they then just moves the bike without trying to ride it Which by that I mean pushing a bike across some area

[@DL-xv9dm]

@@77elite9 What would be the point though? I imagine when people steal bikes they're going to sell them for a quick buck. A backwards bike is going to be too hard to get rid of. It's the same reason why manual vehicles get stolen remarkably less often than automatics in America.

[@77elite9]

@@DL-xv9dm point of what

[@Ellenelsje]

I think the most valuable skill of the channel is the ability to learn and motivate yourself. I love the video of Kim learning to juggle because it shows the process of learning! And I do a Mike Boyd fist pump a lot to reward myself and be genuinely proud and happy of myself when achieving something! All thanks to you Mike ☺️

[@kamathonxander1]

Great list, Mike! Thank you! However, please let me inject my two cents on programming languages: If you just want to learn how to program, please learn something like Python or Java first and then look up what's the best language for the task at hand. Javascript isn't all that fast in being processed and makes solving several problems incredibly diffucult if used for the wrong task.

[@pvic6959]

as an actual software engineer, I agree with you lol. i came here to say the same

[@louistannudin2486]

Software engineer here, I started out with python and java and was lucky enough to get hired right out of college thanks to my understanding of data structures learnt from using those languages

[@furaj624]

I am enclosing my vote as another full time software engineer. The choice of programming language in the case of limited knowledge of technological tools is biased - and as a result of what you mentioned, trivial things become very difficult to achieve. This is obviously not a bad thing, but directing everyone to JavaScript is not a good thing. It's always better to focus on what you want to achieve by programming and then find out which programming language to choose. It's nice that you mentioned this kamathon :-)

[@pvic6959]

@@techtutorvideos um, I know Java is used a LOT in tech. even the huge ones like Google. I even think java is the most us d(or top 3) at google lol

[@SleepyGolen]

Mike legitimately is playing a RPG with a ton of these skills

[@n00bxl71]

6:32 The way you memorised pi may be efficient but, as you said, it doesn't last long. I learned like 70 digits a few at a time by reciting it over and over and remembering it through muscle memory. I have never forgotten any digits. I would recommend this technique for people who actually want to learn pi. I don't see why you would want to, though.

[@appa609]

good for generating some random looking number sequences.

[@averybeck390]

Muscle memory?

[@oxideaitunim]

@@averybeck390 i learned a similar quantity with muscle memory by making the digits of pi my iphone password while i was memorizing it lol

[@QUABLEDISTOCFICKLEPO]

Why would learning more than say, four, pi digits be useful? I still remember fourteen from the time I read about some guy in Ripley's Believe it or Not (that was 69 years ago), who had memorized some fantastic amount, but I wouldn't call it useful. Same with the Presidents. I know them all, but I have to refresh my mental list from time to time. Then there's poetry, but I don't seem to be be to hold on to them that long. Same with song lyrics from songs that were worth remembering (30s and 40s, although Stardust was written in 1927). I'll have to think about it. What's worth memorizing?

[@n00bxl71]

@@averybeck390 If you do a repetitive task for a long time, you get better at it. Just kept reading out the digits, trying to remember them until I just... Stopped having to think about them. It does get more difficult each time you want to add more digits, as you have to read the entirety of all the digits you already know along with the new section.

[@rosskeeley3857]

Coming from someone who switched careers to programming over the last year, learning javascript is really good advice. It's way easier to start and get in to than you might think even from having no experience. Liked this idea for the video! Keep them coming for 2022

[@brownbenplumm9027]

That day of the week trick is so cool. I learned it in about an hour after watching that numberphile video. It’s so fun seeing people so baffled by it

[@zacw8659]

the skiing one killed me! I ski race on a team so I was partially offended and partially laughing like crazy!

[@DavidPerez-ld3ws]

I was disaponted too when he ranked it so low, I think he wanted to learn the fast way and had a bad expirience been trying so, I'm a ski instructor and it takes a lot of time and practice to learn how to ski properly

[@shy_frog]

You’ve helped me so much! You’ve gotten me through a lot so thank you

[@PlanetComputer]

ok

[@abjoern]

Your video on learning to solve the Rubik's cube has genuinely changed my life forever, it's a definite S tier. Since learning it I've been to a bunch of speedcubing competitions and met so many cool people I never would've met otherwise. I would highly recommend it to everyone, it's just a cool skill on it's own, and it always will be.

[@thatonecuuuuuuuber]

This man is so skilled I just no one can compete Mike "No one I know who has learned how to solve a Rubik's cube has regretted it" I couldn't agree more

[@ConnorKrohnicles]

Splitting an apple with your bare hands is incredibly useful. I eat every part of the apple except for the stem: the seeds, the little leaves at the bottom, the hard parts of the core. So being able to grab an apple and break it in fourths is super nice

[@DVSS77]

As a computer science student AND a cuber, the S tier is very satisfying 💙

[@magicfibre]

Glad you put programming that high! It's incredible to come across a technical problem or just a fun idea and be able to fix/realize it with just your skill. It's also cool how each time you do that, you're pretty much guaranteed to learn a bunch of new stuff and become a better programmer overall.

[@william_hartman]

Have you ever thought of learning to use a sling? The old time version of the slingshot. Just a long-ish string with a little holder in the middle where you put a stone, spin it around, release one side of the string, and the rock flies out fast. It's probably pretty difficult to learn, not useful at all, and no one except history nerds would find it cool. So it might not be worth it after all...

[@EvanBoyar]

This is the skill I most want to see him learn

[@CaspianT]

Agreed, it would be cool! It can have some use, like potential small game hunting, scaring off animals, and really anything you'd need a high-speed stone for. It's definitely more of a fun thing to do rather than a genuine tool, though they were definitely used as tools and weapons historically. It's extremely easy to get into, though, and there's really no reason not to try it if you're living in a rural area or are near a beach or something. Two lengths of paracord or other strong-ish cord, and a scrap bit of cloth or leather, or even duct tape layered. Obviously the ammo is dirt cheap.

[@QckSGaming]

"Quite useful, not too hard to learn, impresses people, fun to do" - C tier "No practical use, never done it again, very hard to learn, looks stupid" - S tier This made very little sense in the sense of tiers but it was a cool recap! :P

[@Mushy6005]

I FOUND YOUR CHANEL! I love your videos they were and still are a huge inspiration to me and I’m very glad to see your still making vids. Much love

[@leonhardeuler675]

I think you should memorise the order of a deck of cards. Probably kind of similar to the blindfolded rubik's cube in method. Derren Brown has a chapter in one of his books about it. I learned when I was 12 and I can do it 15 years later and I'm amazed every time I do it that it works.

[@Tomer_Zaitsev]

What do you mean? Can you pick up a deck of cards and remember all of them by order?

[@leonhardeuler675]

@@Tomer_Zaitsev Yep, you look through the deck once. In about 5 minutes I can reliably remember the complete order. You can also ask what the 34th card is, say, and I could tell you. If you asked what comes after the ten of clubs, I could tell you that as well.

[@GringoJacinho]

Love the doomsday formula trick!

[@xyzr_3808]

8 months and no replies to a verified creators comment. A rare sight indeed.

[@Maxmaxs5]

I love that his wife is always just there chillin' and helping him out 😍

[@lukedenezza2732]

I live in Colorado and have been skiing for like 10 years and it’s one of the most fun things of you get good at it

[@NomdePlume337]

I totally agree with you about shooting a scoped rifle. When my dad was teaching me how to shoot as a kid I couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with a handgun, but the moment he handed me his rifle I put every shot through the bull's eye

[@Sportikay]

Could you learn some parkour moves? They feel so satisfying when you do them and are incredibly useful if you live in sketchy places

[@exanimo8554]

Yep. I use it everyday to escape my local criminals.

[@recitationtohear]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aKTcYnariN92hbs Finally yes

[@mohanish35]

@@exanimo8554 hahahah gold

[@TheGeoffreyDyck]

Ya, like a Kong or something

[@JohnnyBGSkills]

Thanks for the idea lol

[@oskarholmlarsson6744]

Learn pen tricks. Fairly easy, really cool, always a pen available and really satisfying! :)

[@yes4246]

Hello mike I love your videos and thanks for making them. You have inspired me to learn so many new things and I thank you for that.

[@nikjavor]

S: Wheelie, Solve a 3x3, Learn to code. A: Crack a glass with voice, Bunny hop, Umbrella trick, Rubik's cube blindfolded, Open wine bottle with glass, Make fire, Riding a bike upstairs, Dotted lines, Pick a lock, Swim in cold water, Know the day of every date. B: Kickflip, Holding breath 4 minutes, Stack dice, Split an apple, Ride rollers, Spin a basketball, Manual, Muscle up. C: Backwards bike, Axe throwing, Bullwhip, Card springs, Finding water in forest, Penny farthing, Tablecloth trick, Salmon ladder, Crack a safe, Juggle, Unicycle, Slingshot. D: Backflip, Crankflip, Memorizing pi, Learn to ski (skiing is cool actually), Learn to shoot

[@jimmccloskey3601]

I'd like to visit Scotland sometime - mostly because I like and respect Mike Boyd so much. One of the most likable people on the internets & great ambassador.

[@user-qb3tk8rs8t]

The offscreen contributions from Kim are ace. It's funny to get little insights into her view on watching the different skills

[@duanemcintosh8908]

Hey mike just an idea, i love hearing you talk about the skills you've learned and how some are the gift that keeps on giving. just wanna put the bug in your ear and say learn to play an instrument, its not a skill you can ever say you've finished but its great, i started playing guitar about 10 years ago and to this day its the best thing ive ever done with my life. brings me so much joy

[@AdvancedLiving]

Here’s a difficult one - teach a Staffordshire Terrier to not pull on leash. I’m 3 years in and we’ve made some progress… but every time he sees a bunny or squirrel, it’s hopeless.

[@fredsta500]

Get a golden retriever or some other dog that's not interested in mauling animals. They don't even have to learn not to kill!

[@andrewadams530]

How did spinning a basketball rank ABOVE JUGGLING? Wtf is this. Juggling is SO much cooler then spinning a basket ball, has infinitely more utility because you can show off in any place at any time by juggling different things, where as with a basketball you have to carry it around with you, also it has way more depth because you can learn a million tricks if you spend time that make it EVEN cooler. Idk, my mind was literally blown at that ranking.

[@MrMrPurple]

Juggling being placed in the C tier was fucking offensive. I’m in awe every time I think about it. It’s literally easy to learn, very fun, looks cool, you can do it almost everywhere, it’s a whole fucking category of a skill with countless tricks, improves hand-eye coordination, ET CETERA. I could go on but then this comment would sound sponsored. It’s a quintessential S tier motherfucking skill, even, no, ESPECIALLY in relation to his other rankings and reasons he gave for those rankings. This shit just isn’t fucking adding up. Is he dyslexic and mixed C up with S?? And the other motherfucker in the background didn’t even bat an eye at this unprecedented logical defect. Shit

[@UniMart_Martin]

I used your video while learning how to ride myself and send it to others too. I ride to work. I go off road and long distance. Also it is really cool. 👍🏻

[@eddebrock]

Javascript is more of a frankenstein's monster. So while you're technically using Javascript; it's like learning different languages.

[@anderseriksson6445]

You inspired me to learn the Dooms day algorithm trick and I just love being able to do that... Thanks for all the entertainment and inspiration Mike, I always look forward to what's next.

[@urbanphotographer]

A lot of good videos and I’m impressed by your skills. Where did ”downhill biking” go though?

[@ApexHerbivore]

Profile pic checks out

[@manosnikoletos]

It went downhill lol

[@graemeday9292]

I took you advice and learned how to solve the 2x2 and 3x3! I actually feel like god every time I solve it, would definitely recommend. Thank you mike for being so persuasive, I am so glade I learned that one!👍😁

[@samquasi3986]

For the skiing part, I think you should try cross-country skiing. It's a lot more effort, and it may not help you that much, but I think that it's a lot more fun than regular skiing. Basically, you don't have any chair lifts, and you yourself ski up hills

[@werdnativ]

I would recommend you take two of your D-tier skills and see if they add up to something better. Have you heard of biathlon?

[@psyso-cleanedits8953]

Have you considered learning to lucid dream? I can't do it yet but it sounds really cool and kind of useful since you can practice skills in a lucid dream

[@felixhamel1853]

It wouldn’t make for a great video though

[@NeodymiumProgrammer]

6:35 I actually memorised like 70 digits of Pi like 5 years ago. I can still easily list as many as 50 in rapid succession. It's very useless but kind of fun and a neat little party trick. I've always been good with numbers, so that probably helped me a bit in learning and then remembering.

[@kenfreeman8888]

It was nice going over all those skill videos of yours I enjoyed for the past few years (while solving a Rubik's Cube). Well done, best wishes and looking forward to more in the future.

[@kaia8167]

I just clicked on this randomly....while I'm taking a break from learning javascript .LMAO. Very happy to see you endorse it so enthusiastically. Also, totally agree that Rubik's cubes make for great fidget toys. I think cold water swimming should have been in S - learning how to calm your mind in the face of intense discomfort is SO powerful and translates to almost every other aspect of life. Otherwise, I think you nailed it. Really cool video.

[@TheCodingTrain]

Woohoo! !(or should I say choochoo!) Late to catch up on this but glad to see JavaScript and coding make it to the S tier!!

[@Ed.E]

Choo choo!

[@preston_padgett]

it’s not too hard to learn 100 digits of pi, just don’t do it with that weird letter system or whatever. I just broke it up into groups of 4 or 5 numbers, looked for patterns in the groups that made it easier to remember, and kept going further and further and writing it down as much as i could to see how far I could get. Took me maybe about a week to get it down solid, that was 4 years ago, I barely ever practice it and I can still recite all 100 digits at any moment

[@ArmorFN]

Yeah it's just not worth it in the long run to use the letter system, 1. It takes too long to actually get to the digits. 2. You actually need materials like a pen and paper to write down and decode digits. 3. You'll forget the digits quickly because you have to go out of your way to practice. 4. People are way more impressed when you can just have them look up the digits of their phone and follow along with you as you recite them, people aren't gonna watch you write down your short story and find your letters and decode them for 10 minutes. Really that method of learning the digits is just a double edged sword. Some people say it saves time to memorize the digits that way but for me it only took me 4 hours to memorize the first 150 digits of pi by just brute force. And now it only takes me 20 seconds to recite them so I don't have to go out of my way to practice them. The reason Mike feels like learning the digits was just like cramming for school where you forget the information right after is because he never did try to remember the digits, after the video it was too far out of his way to practice them anymore, it's kind of sad really, all that time and effort he spent has just gone to waste.

[@preston_padgett]

@@ArmorFN exactly, and it’s fun to just go through the digits in my head sometimes when i’m bored to make sure i can still do it

[@etopsirhc]

the problem with the shooting one is you were given a super accurate gun and shot from the single most stable position possible. get a standard single shot rifle, with just the iron sights it comes with and shoot from a standing position. as well as try a hand gun. but then once your comfortable with guns and gun safety, go fire a musket! that is an insanely fun gun. they're not great for accuracy, it fires slow, reloading is a whole process of it's own, but it looks and feels like you're firing a cannon. i'm not saying learning how to fire a gun is S teir, but learning the safety involved with how to properly handle one alone should be.

[@BloodAsp]

In addition, he skipped the whole take down, assembly, maintenance, and loading your own cartridges.

[@alexxans1154]

8:50 I would have to disagree. The first and only time that i went skiing was a school trip in high school. We stayed at a mountain resort for 5 days with only 2 teachers supervising around 30 kids. The teachers showed us the basics and then we were free to go wherever we wanted to go, as any attempt to supervise us would be futile. Just that experience, learning to ski on the first day on the small track and falling over and over again, only to slowly start to grasp how you are supposed to do it and then, only a few hours later, be able to conquer the large and steep tracks. Just the combination of accomplishment, the adrenaline due to traveling at the speed of a car on a highway and the eventual feeling of control that you gain made it one of the most amazing experiences. Its been the only sport that i have ever actively enjoyed. In only five days i went from failing to stand still while wearing the skis to traveling downhill at breakneck speeds while having full control of my movement, not to mention that my close friend that came with me had basically the same progress. It might have been only 5 days, but it was probably amongst the best moments in my whole life and i can't wait for the day when i will get the opportunity to go skiing again. Granted, i live in a place where the weather is almost always warm without snow so i generally enjoy colder climates and that might have played a role. So while i respect Mike's opinion, please, if given the opportunity do give skiing a try. I cant guarantee that you will enjoy it the same way i did, but who knows, maybe it will also click for you.

[@seasonedglue9178]

i just found your account and, my 8 month old daughter saw you and IMMEDIATELY fell in LOVE!!!! shes smiling and talking to the screen when you come on 🥺

[@tempest_dawn]

As a professional Javascript developer I do have to disagree with how you've characterized it. It's relatively easy to learn (the syntax isn't quite as straightforward as Python I'll admit, but it working in a browser without any additional tools is a huge benefit there), and it's not even close to "lightning fast". In most web contexts that doesn't matter, but if raw speed is what someone needs they'd be better served with C# (still easy-ish to learn) or C++ (yeah no, don't learn this one first). I still totally recommend people learn it if they want to do programming though - it is incredibly versatile, and the language tooling have gotten to a point where it's no longer as difficult to write as it used to be.

[@frederikja2210]

i was legitemitly facepaming when he said fast. but i mean, modern computers in general are fast so at this piint i guess all non esiåoteric languages are indeed fast

[@tempest_dawn]

@@frederikja2210 Yeah modern JS is much faster than old JS (not just because of computer improvements, but the JIT compilers for JS have gotten very advanced) but yeah if you compare it to a compiled language it does still have a disadvantage there.

[@richard_noblockhit]

I really appreciate your efforts and I'm fascinated by a lot of your skills, especially biking skills if you consider that i like nountainbiking too, but programming languages, oh boi. If you think that javascipt is more powerful than python, you haven't learned python properly, its a cleaner, more open, accessable and more powerful language by faaar. I have not seen well structured code in JS written by an intermediate or professional Programmer in a hurry, python is just better set up, of course, JS is a lot faster in some applications, and you may only get more out of python in that aspect using C, losing all the benefits, but modern day computers are usually fast enough, so that everything that you code what is really useful, runs fine. These days, its more about logic and not performance in speed, memory or disk usage. And python is clearly superior in 2 of those 4 anyway, mainly in logic. And JS sux, sry

[@kasperdynebrink7841]

What I like about skiing is that when you learn it once you'll remember kind of lile bikeing

[@franpalokaj]

I started learning programming a few weeks ago. I was watching this video to see if there were any extra cool side skills to learn, and then you tell me to learn how to program. The universe has aligned.

[@crazyfool4325]

When i went skiing with school it was over 20 years ago, it was probably the most fun I've ever had.