When you use MS Office with Excel, Word and Powerpoint, search with Google, or even use Notepad in Windows, there are steps that can be skipped if you use keyboard shortcuts. The rise of technology and the dependence on it in our lives has created a need for people to learn how to use software key shortcuts. This is useful because software becomes more complex and we find it useful to quickly perform actions we do repeatedly.
Shortcuts are key combinations that help us access certain features quickly, without having to go through all the menu options. They save us time and make us more productive.
There are a few software key shortcuts that every office worker should know, and today we will discuss their importance and benefits.
Access management tools
Companies are becoming more and more reliant on automated management tools to help them run their business. These tools, such as https://opal.dev software, can be used for a myriad of tasks including project management, customer relationship management, email marketing, and much more.
Automated management tools allow companies to save time by automating various processes that would otherwise need manual attention.
This means you will have fewer overhead costs and the focus will go back to your core competencies instead of spending time on tasks like managing contacts or setting up new campaigns in marketing automation platforms. There are many benefits of using automated management systems for businesses – so let’s get into some shortcuts standardized across many Microsoft applications.
Microsoft shortcuts
Have you ever used Microsoft Word and felt like it was difficult to find certain features? Well, did you know that there are shortcuts for many of the tasks we do in MS Word?
Shortcuts are key combinations that help us access certain features quickly, without having to go through all the menu options. They save us time and make us more productive.
There are a few software shortcuts that every office worker should know, and today we will show them and their benefits.
- One of the most useful Microsoft shortcuts is Control + F, which allows you to search for a specific word or phrase in your document. This is extremely helpful if you are working on a long document and need to find a specific piece of information quickly.
- Another great shortcut, arguably the most useful shortcut, is Control + S, which allows you to save your document. This may seem like an obvious one, but it can be easy to forget to save your work periodically, especially if you are working on a large project.
- The last Microsoft shortcut we will discuss is Control + P, which allows you to print your document. This can be very helpful if you need to have a hard copy of your work or share it with someone who does not have access to a computer.
Many other Microsoft shortcuts can be extremely helpful in your day-to-day work life. We encourage you to take some time to familiarize yourself with them so that you can be more productive and efficient in your use of MS Word.
Google shortcuts, Bing Shortcuts
As we all know, Google is one of the most popular search engines on the internet. Did you also know that there are shortcuts that can help you use it more efficiently? While this might be a function of your browser, you can certainly use them while using Google and Bing.
One of the most useful Google shortcuts is Control + T, which allows you to open a new tab. This can be very helpful if you need to lookup multiple things at once or if you want to keep your search results organized.
- Control + W allows you to close the current tab. This can be helpful if you are done looking at a particular set of search results and want to move on to the next set.
- Control + F does the same task as in Microsoft Word, allowing you to search for a specific word or phrase on the current page. This can be extremely helpful if you are looking for information on a particular topic and want to find it quickly. Another way to look for a topic on the internet is to insert the entire website in the Google search bar, so www.searchwebsitename.com term (whatever you are interested in).
Using a simple Notepad
Notepad is a basic text editor that’s included with Windows. You can use it to create or open text files, as well as save your work. To open Notepad, press Win+R to launch the Run dialog, type notepad, and press Enter.
- Quickly create a new text file in Notepad, press Ctrl+N.
- To save a file in Notepad, press Ctrl+S.
- Close a file in Notepad, press Ctrl+W.
- To reopen a closed file in Notepad, press Ctrl+O.
- To print a file in Notepad, press Ctrl+P.
If you need to find a word or phrase in a text file, use the Find feature. To open the Find dialog, press Ctrl+F. Type the text you’re looking for and click Find Next.
Excel Control Key Shortcuts
Excel is a popular spreadsheet application. It’s used for everything from creating budgets to tracking sales data. Here are some useful shortcuts for Excel:
The standard shortcuts for creating new files, reopening, etc. are the same as any other Microsoft software.
- A new favorite of mine: shortcut for filter in excel (eg. in a table) Press Control+Shift+L.
- To select all the cells in a worksheet, press Ctrl+A.
- One you likely already know: To copy data to the clipboard, hit Ctrl+C.
- Many also know: To paste data from the clipboard, press Ctrl+V.
- To clear the contents of a cell, press Ctrl+Delete. (Although, why not just hit delete?!)
- Similar sounding, but more useful which performs a very different action:
Use Ctrl+d in Excel to ‘fill down’ the contents of a cell or cells to other selected cells in rows below.
In other words, it is like two shortcuts in one! Ctrl+c to copy the top row and Ctrl+v to paste to all the cells in rows below that you also have selected. But even quicker because it’s two in 1! - To format cells, select them and then press Ctrl+1 to open the Format Cells dialog.
- To enter numbers in scientific notation, press Ctrl+Shift+5.
- Press Ctrl+Shift+2 to enter a date,
- To enter a time, press Ctrl+Shift+3.
- Not sure this is really a shortcut, but some might not know: To select a range of cells, hold down the Shift key and click the first and last cells in the range.
Did you know you can copy MS File Explorer Filenames and Folders to Excel? It’s a very handy shortcut compared to writing it out manually! You can do it easily. To learn how, see this article: Copy file and folder names into Excel.
And a special method to use 2 Tricks Save Explorer Search Results to Excel.
PowerPoint Shortcuts
The main PowerPoint shortcuts that are different in embedded spreadsheets are those for selecting cells, copying and pasting data, and formatting cells.
- To select a single cell, press F8. To select a range of cells, press Shift+F8.
- Not really different shortcut to copy data to the clipboard, press Ctrl+C. To paste data from the clipboard, press Ctrl+V.
- To format cells, select them and then press Ctrl+1 to open the Format Cells dialog.
Outlook shortcuts
Many MS Outlook key shortcuts are the same as those in other Microsoft applications.
However, there are a few that are specific to Outlook:
- To create a new email, press Ctrl+Shift+M.
- To reply to an email, press Ctrl+R.
- Forward an email by pressing Ctrl+F.
- To delete an email, press Ctrl+D.
No matter what you do, every office worker can be helped by some of these useful key shortcuts.
We encourage you to familiarize yourself with the key shortcuts discussed in this article. You can be more productive in your work. In times when work efficiency needs to constantly improve because of the dense market competition, every edge you can get can help.
Increasing efficiency and downsizing the time spent doing a specific assignment, even if it is just a few moments can over time turn into significant minutes or hours saved per week. This allows for employees to focus on other more important agendas or tasks.
Using these key shortcuts in MS Office and other software enables you to work more efficiently and effectively.
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