Strange but True: The World’s Weirdest Jobs and Why They Matter

Have you ever heard of a face feeler?

What about a water slide tester or a digital linguist?

These aren’t characters from a movie—they’re real jobs!

As technology and society evolve, so do our professions.

In today’s lesson, we dive into the world of unusual jobs and explore how to describe your own weird (but wonderful) job using the right language, grammar tips, and elevator pitch strategies.

Would you want an unusual job? Let’s find out!

📚 Vocabulary Builder

• undemanding – not difficult or physically tiring

• awkward – uncomfortable or strange

• drained – very tired

• attribute – a quality or characteristic

• editable – able to be changed or revised

• hard-wired – built-in or instinctual

• trivial – simple or easy to understand

• interlocutor – the person you’re speaking with

• fictional – imaginary or made-up

• recycling – the process of converting waste into reusable material

📖 Weird Jobs That Are Totally Real

Angela: Hand Model
Hi, I’m Angela, and my job might sound simple—but it’s far from undemanding. I’m a professional hand model. That means my hands appear in magazines, ads, and product shoots. I have to care for them 24/7. Sometimes I hold uncomfortable poses for hours. It’s exhausting! One surprising attribute of the job? I often pose with my hands on someone else’s face or body—those hands you see in beauty ads? They might be mine!

Nick: Digital Linguist
Greetings! I’m Nick. Ever heard of a digital linguist? Most people haven’t. My job is to help AI understand human language. I program systems to react to voice commands, translate, and convert speech into text. I also fix errors in data and create editable dictionaries and symbol-recognition software. It's a blend of language, tech, and logic.

Kenji: Train Pusher in Tokyo
My name is Kenji, and yes—I push people for a living. In Tokyo, trains are so crowded during rush hour that people like me, called “oshiya” (pushers), are hired to gently but firmly push passengers into packed carriages so the doors can close. It may sound awkward, but it’s a respected job that keeps the city running. You need balance, politeness, and a lot of patience!

Ray: Golf Ball Diver
I dive into water hazards at golf courses to collect lost balls. It’s a dirty, sometimes dangerous job (think: snakes, mud, sharp branches), but the pay is surprisingly good. I’ve pulled out thousands in a single day. People don’t think about where those “recycled” golf balls come from—it’s me!

📺 Bonus Listening Practice
Watch this video to discover more weird and surprising jobs, from pet food tasters to professional cuddlers!

👉 YouTube: The 10 Weirdest Jobs in the World and What They Pay
What would motivate someone to do these jobs? Which one would you try?

🧾 Verified List: The Weirdest Jobs That Actually Exist

Sourced from Insider, BBC, and Business Insider:

• Pet Food Taster – Tastes dog or cat food for quality control

• Professional Sleeper – Gets paid to sleep for research studies

• Line Stand-In – Waits in queues for others (for concerts, new products)

• Snake Milker – Extracts venom from snakes to make antivenom

• Face Feeler – Touches faces to test skincare results

• Water Slide Tester – Rides and rates water slides

• Professional Mourner – Hired to cry at funerals in some cultures

• Furniture Tester – Sits or sleeps on furniture to test comfort

• Train Pusher (Japan) – Pushes people into trains during rush hour

• Iceberg Mover – Relocates icebergs from oil rigs and ships

• Scuba Diving Pizza Delivery Man – Delivers pizzas to an underwater hotel

• Dog Surfing Coach – Trains dogs for surfing competitions

• Paper Towel Sniffer – Checks scent quality of paper products

• Professional Cuddler – Offers non-romantic physical affection

• Odor Judge – Smells armpits to test deodorants

➡️ Which one shocked you most?

What’s Next? Future Weird Jobs You Might See by 2050

Technology and global trends are changing everything—including our jobs. Here are some futuristic professions predicted to become common in the next 30 years:

• Bioethicist – Helps patients, families, doctors, and lawyers solve medical dilemmas at the crossroads of science, genetics, and ethics.

• Manager of Cross-Cultural Communication – Advises multinational companies on how to avoid cultural misunderstandings in international business.

• Robot Mechanic (Robotics Technician) – Builds, repairs, and trains robots used in homes, factories, hospitals, and public life.

• Clothes Recycling Expert – Designs new ways to reuse clothing materials and reduce fashion waste.

• Space Tour Guide – Plans space journeys and explains space history to wealthy tourists in orbit!

• Social Media Police Officer – Fights cyberbullying, online fraud, and harmful digital content across global platforms.

• Virtual World Designer – Creates immersive metaverse environments for entertainment, education, or therapy.

• Trend Watcher – Spots and analyzes shifts in tech, politics, and culture, then advises businesses on future strategies.

• Walker/Talker – A compassionate online companion who chats with isolated elderly people to reduce loneliness.

👉 Which of these could you imagine doing?

📈 Interesting Stats

• 35% of Gen Z workers are in careers that didn’t exist 15 years ago (LinkedIn, 2024).

• The global gig economy is expected to grow to $455 billion by 2026.

• Jobs like virtual interior designer, TikTok strategist, and digital legacy manager are now common!

• Experts say the average person will switch careers 5–7 times in their lifetime.

🧠 Grammar Focus: Countable, Uncountable & Collective Nouns

✅ Countable Nouns

• Can be counted

• Use a/an, many, a few
  Examples: job, person, tool, test
  ✅ I had three interviews today.
  ✅ That’s a weird job!

❌ Uncountable Nouns

• Cannot be counted individually

• Use some, a lot of, much
  Examples: advice, work, equipment, information
  ✅ She gave me useful advice.
  🚫 Incorrect: She gave me many advices.

👥 Collective Nouns

• Refer to a group as a single unit
  Examples: team, staff, family, crew, audience
  🇬🇧 British English: Can be singular or plural
  🇺🇸 American English: Usually singular
  ✅ The team are working late (UK)
  ✅ The team is working late (US)

🧩 Grammar Tip:
“Jobs” = countable
“Work” = uncountable
So we say:
✅ I have three jobs, but too much work!

🗣️ Speaking Practice: Your Job in One Sentence

Some weird jobs are hard to explain. That’s why we use an elevator pitch—a one-sentence explanation that’s simple and clear.

🗣 Angela’s Pitch:
“I model hands for advertisements and take care of them like a celebrity.”

🗣 Ray’s Pitch:
“I dive into golf course ponds to collect and resell lost golf balls.”

🗣 Kenji’s Pitch:
“I gently push commuters into Tokyo trains to help keep the schedule running smoothly.”

👉 Now You: Can you explain your job (or dream job) in one clear sentence?

✅ Quick Reading Quiz

Are the following statements True or False?

1️⃣ Angela’s job is easy and doesn’t require effort.
2️⃣ Ray works in a clean and relaxing environment.
3️⃣ Nick helps AI understand human language.
4️⃣ Uncountable nouns like “work” can be made plural.
5️⃣ A snake milker works in entertainment.

Answers:

• False

• False

• True

• False

• False

💬 Discussion Questions

• Which job from the list do you find most fascinating?

• Would you prefer a weird job that pays well or a normal job that pays less?

• How would you explain your job using only one sentence?

• Do you think weird jobs will become more common in the future? Why?

• Have you ever done a job that was hard to explain to others?

🌟 Final Reflection

Not every career comes with a business card and a formal title. From snake milkers to AI linguists to future space tour guides, today’s world is full of fascinating and unexpected jobs.

The key is learning how to talk about your work with clarity, confidence, and curiosity. Whether your job is creative, confusing, or completely new—own it.

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