This is maybe the most useful thing I'll ever blog. Next time you have to call a major customer service line and you're annoyed by the computerized phone system, pull up this handy chart. It tells you the exact keys to punch or command to say if you want to bypass the menus and talk to a human. My favorite is the Dell Customer Service hotline:

option 1, xt 7266966, option 1, option 4, option 4

Ugh!

The secrets seem to be:

  • For keypad-based systems try hitting 0 or #.
  • For voice-based systems say 'agent' or 'operator'.