If you are looking for the top 10 telephone tricks you need to be aware of, look no further than this post over at Life Hacker. You want to know how to "gracefully" bow out of a long-winded conversation? How to save money on directory assistance? How to get an IVR system to rapidly connect you with a live operator — here is a hint —  .

One other cool trick is making your phone "play dead." If it works for bears it should work for automated dialers as well. Enjoy.