History Main / WorkplaceAcquiredAbilities

[[folder:Film]]

* In the MarvelComics series ''U.S. 1'', aliens recruit long-haul truck drivers as starship because their experience with the open road is similar to space.

[[quoteright:350:[[Manga/BlackLagoon https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/BLnegotiation_8881.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[AggressiveNegotiations Negotiation comes in handy even when rocket launchers are involved.]]]]

* In the setting of [[https://www.awkwardzombie.com/comic/taking-a-beading this]] ''Webcomic/AwkwardZombie'' comic, law courts are savage places where violence is not only common but sanctioned. Therefore, experienced lawyer VisualNovel/PhoenixWright can effortlessly endure a shaman's attacks.

* ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'': Perrin is made extremely strong due to being an apprentice blacksmith. And also gets his alternate [[DropTheHammer weapon]] from it.

** Donna Noble, Super Temp. She can find her way across an office blindfolded. (Or so she claims.) What she can certainly do is perform AwesomenessByAnalysis on anything having to do with numbers or bureaucratic minutiate, such as spotting that something is off due to the "sick day" register being completely blank.

* Huey in ''LightNovel/TheMysticArchivesOfDantalian'' used to be a military pilot. His battle skills have saved his life more than once since inheriting the key to the Mystic Archive. Dalian was actually pretty impressed. His knowledge of literature has also helped him since his job is basically finding magic books and locking them away so they can't be misused.

* In the isekai ''LightNovel/CookingWithWildGame'', the protagonist is a chef who once observed a butcher at work. What he remembers of skinning and animal biology comes in handy when he's dropped into a medieval-era world and decides to remain a chef, although the modern conveniences and infrastructure he relied on are gone.

* Literature/GauntsGhosts: Though many of the Ghosts were raised from the planetary defense force or city militias like you might expect, their scouts were often woodsmen who learned firsthand the kind of stealth and survival skills the Tanith become known for. (Scout Sergeant Mkoll, for instance, was a professional game hunter.) And once the regiment leaves Tanith, [[ClosestThingWeGot the necessities of the situation]] lead to a lot of soldiers gaining new specialties based on their past experience to fill out the unit's needs: machine workers become experts in demolition, Verghastine miners become their pioneers and sappers, and so forth. Infamously, [[PlayingWithFire flame-trooper Brostin]] picked up his affinity for fire as a firefighter [[MultipleChoicePast and/or]] arsonist.

[[folder: Fanfic]]

* ''Videogame/AssassinsCreedIVBlackFlag'': Edward Kenway's skill at free running comes from working on a ship for the better part of a decade by the time he first discovers the Assassins. The need to quickly climb up a ship's masts and across its rigging translates well into climbing tall buildings and leaping across rooftops.
** Edward's grandson [[VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII Connor]] learned free running in a similar fashion, growing up in an environment where tree climbing is a must. Connor was also raised to be a Mohawk warrior, giving him some fighting prowess before he was sent to join the Assassins.

-->'''Man:''' You're amazing! You were a professional swimmer, aren't you?\\

* Arguably, Series/JonathanCreek.

* Rock from ''Manga/BlackLagoon'' was a former salaryman before joining the Lagoon Company. Now he uses his previous skills and handles business negotiations and public relations for the group of mercenaries.

* The hero of ''Film/TheSorcerersApprentice'' is a science student and upon being taught wizardry is able to accomplish a lot due to his knowledge of how science works.

* The ''Sales Assistant Voice''. It's hardly heroic, but developing the ability to deal with, help, endear, and even not be intimidated by, a wide variety of people with a calm and professional attitude, is a lot more common in people who have had to work some kind of retail job. Of course, sometimes it [[StopHelpingMe backfires]]. This also applies to people who work in Call Centres who are ranked as often being the target of abuse.

** Makanochi Ippo acquired his large amount of strength in his arms and legs by helping out his mother's fishing business.

* Sena of ''Manga/{{Eyeshield 21}}'' began developed his exceptional footwork as a result of being bullied into (literally) running errands throughout his school years. He was briefly taught some proper running technique by a football-playing friend of his beforehand, though, and has to put in a lot of hard work to refine his skills for use on the field.
* Kobayashi from ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'' is able to ace the written portion of a high ranking mage exam thanks to her experiences as a systems engineer (the programming language her company uses is modeled off of the magic system in question).

* In the MarvelComics series ''U.S. 1'', aliens recruit long haul truck drivers as starship because their experience with the open road is similar to space.

* In ''Fanfic/CodeGeassThePreparedRebellion'', Ohgi used to be a high school teacher until the annexation replaced the educational system with a pro-Britannian one. Zero finds his background useful because Ohgi's WorkplaceAcquiredAbilities makes him a level-headed and very patient person capable of getting rowdy resistance fighters to do their jobs with little to no conflict. This is big part of the reason why Zero keeps Ohgi [[NumberTwo high within the hierarchy]] of the Black Knights.

* Film/{{Conan|TheBarbarian1982}} became so strong because in his youth, he was a slave who did some [[WheelOfPain really heavy work]].
* Early in ''Film/{{Spotlight}}'', we learn that Mark Rezendes worked as a cabdriver before he became a reporter. This skill comes into play after he gets a key piece of evidence later in the movie, when he advises the cabby taking him back to the ''Boston Globe'' office that he'll get there more quickly if he ''doesn't'' take I-93.

* In ''Film/TheLibrarian'', the main character uses all the knowledge he's gained from being a full-time student-for-life and obtaining basically every degree known to man to aid him in finding dangerous treasure and locking it in The Library. In fact his ridiculous knowledge pool is why he's recruited in the first place.
* In the {{backstory}} to ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'' the wizard uses his knowledge of simple stage magic and slight-of-hand to become the ruler of the country through "magic". ''Film/OzTheGreatAndPowerful'' shows it in detail: He devises a large stage magic trick that allows him to scare off the 2 Wicked Witches, saving the country and making the people choose him as its ruler.

* Idries Shah's ''Tales of the Dervishes'' recounts the parable of Fatima, a weaver's daughter who was repeatedly shipwrecked in different countries and had to learn a trade to survive in each one. But she felt it was all for nothing, because every time she got comfortable in one land she was jolted into a new one. ''Then'' she washed up on a country whose king was offering vast riches to anyone who could construct a tent for him (tents having not yet been invented there) and of course, Fatima's experiences enabled her to do just that. Cue happy ending [[note]]nevermind the fact that her father was still dead...[[/note]]

* Inversion - Moist from the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' books is so successful at running the post office and later the bank because of skills he aquired during his earlier career as an international con artist.
* In the {{backstory}} to ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'' the wizard uses his knowledge of simple stage magic and slight-of-hand to become the ruler of the country through "magic".

* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilOutbreak'' has several characters who have special skills based off of their occupations. George is a doctor and can make medicine while David is able to combine items and make new weapons using duct tape on account of being a plumber.

* In the second ''VideoGame/TraumaCenter'' game Stiles uses his surgical knowledge and tools to dismantle a computer operated door.

* Alice, the main character from ''Webcomic/EvilPlan'', starts the comic looking for a place to work and ends up hired on to build and maintain designs for a super villain. A lifetime of working as an engineer prepared her for the super villain game.
* In ''Webcomic/ManlyGuysDoingManlyThings'', Jones's day job is an apprentice butcher at the local supermarket. During the Nomura Syndrome arc, she's seen skinning and dressing the monsters they kill for food. Later, Commander Badass recruits Jones for the Survival Derby game specifically for her monster-butchering skills.

* In the setting of [[http://www.awkwardzombie.com/index.php?page=0&comic=103017 this]] ''Webcomic/AwkwardZombie'' comic, law courts are savage places where violence is not only common but sanctioned. Therefore, experienced lawyer VisualNovel/PhoenixWright can effortlessly endure a shaman's attacks.

* Spartacus. Fighting skills and showmanship learnt in the arena prepared him, effectively, to lead an army of a hundred thousand escaped slaves and gladiators. (He did not actually do the whole hero-ideological-overthrow-Rome thing, preferring only to go home, and eventually was defeated, of course, but it was still a pretty good show.)

* Huey in ''Anime/TheMysticArchivesOfDantalian'' used to be a military pilot. His battle skills have saved his life more than once since inheriting the key to the Mystic Archive. Dalian was actually pretty impressed. His knowledge of literature has also helped him since his job is basically finding magic books and locking them away so they can't be misused.