Appearances can fool us in the most unexpected ways.
A man in casual clothes and slippers recently stunned Malaysians when his actual career turned out to be something that quite literally soars above expectations.
Viral TikTok “Guess My Job” challenge
It all started with a lighthearted TikTok challenge by @schola.my. In the clip, a young woman invited a casually dressed man to join a “guess my job” game.
From the looks of it, no one would’ve guessed his profession. Clad in a plain grey T-shirt, black pants, and slippers, he blended in like any regular Malaysian out for a quick lepak.
To make things interesting, the woman fired off several questions, asking if he worked in an office, dealt with clients, or was involved in workshops or TVET.
After a few hints, the man gave away a single clue: “passengers.”
That was enough for her to guess correctly. To everyone’s surprise, the unassuming young man was in fact a pilot.
Inside the life of a pilot
Of course, the revelation sparked curiosity. People wanted to know, what’s life really like as a pilot?
The young man shared that flying the plane is just one part of the job. Before every takeoff, pilots must coordinate with engineers to ensure the aircraft is in safe condition.
“Before we fly, we need to ensure the aircraft is in good condition so accidents don’t happen,” he explained.
He went on to highlight the career path for aspiring aviators. Pilots can train privately to obtain a Commercial Pilot License (CPL) with Instrument Rating (IR), or join cadetship programmes offered by airlines when openings appear.
But behind the prestige of the profession lies plenty of hard work.
From endless paperwork to regular safety checks after every 50 to 100 flying hours, the job can get overwhelming. On top of that, he rated the stress level a full 10 out of 10, joking that captains often push juniors to their limits.
Still, he encouraged those dreaming of the skies to take the leap:
“Just go for it. It may look scary, but it’s definitely worth it.”
“I thought he worked at a car wash”
The twist immediately caught netizens off guard. Judging by his laid-back outfit, many admitted they thought he was a mechanic or even someone working at a car wash.
The comments section quickly filled with disbelief and laughter:
“Sorry bro, I guessed you worked at a workshop 😭”
“I was confident he worked at a car wash 🥹”
“Just slippers? Turns out he’s a pilot 😳”
“He really used his off day well, didn’t even dress up 🤣”
At the same time, others were impressed by his confidence and fluent explanation of the job, with some saying it made them respect him even more.
“Don’t judge a book by its cover”
Many pointed out that professionals often prefer to dress comfortably on their off days, trading in suits and uniforms for simple T-shirts and slippers.
As one netizen summed it up perfectly:
“People in professional fields are so used to formal attire, so when they’re off duty, they just want to dress comfortably.”
Speaking to WeirdKaya, this guessing game was actually part of the Bangku Schola series, an initiative aimed at introducing Malaysian youths to different career paths.
Schola, a local NGO, also runs a free career exploration website schola.org.my, designed especially for secondary school students to learn more about potential professions and futures.
According to the organisers, the series hopes to inspire young people to dream big and explore careers they may not have considered before
Watch the video here:
