21 Easy Keyboard Shortcuts to Save You Time

You have probably been using a computer for years, maybe decades and either you already use keyboard shortcuts or you don't. Things have been going fine and you're thinking, "Why would I start using them now, that sounds like a lot of work!" While it may seem insignificant, in the long run Keyboard Shortcuts are going to save you a lot of time.

My love for them goes back to my days where my brother and I would fight over who would use the keyboard. We would try and mess up the other's work but the mouse was too slow so we would learn the shortcuts. Think about it, computer mice take up space, they require ergonomics separate from the keyboard and they are just all around slow.

If nothing else, you might want to learn them because your students know them. I guarantee if they see you coming and they are doing something else they are going to quickly hit Alt-F4 or Alt-Tab. 

One of my personal interests is optimization and efficiency. Having read books and reports by experts in this field, they will often make non-sensical suggestions to businesses like moving the printer 3 feet to the left, or getting a desk with an extra drawer. The point is that these small changes save minutes of time which compounded over a year can add up to hours and over a lifetime I would like to think that I didn't needlessly waste time.

I restricted my suggestions to the 21 keyboard shortcuts I use everyday and those that are relatively easy to remember. If you focus on just one a day you will find yourself picking them up so quick that you don't even have to think about them after a while. If you would like a more comprehensive list I suggest you check our Wikipedia's list.

Internet Browsing	Windows	Mac
Back / Previous	Alt + Left Arrow	Alt + Left Arrow
Forward / Next	Alt + Right Arrow	Alt + Right Arrow
Refresh	F5 or Ctrl + R	Cmd + R
Close Tab	Ctrl + W	Cmd + W
Open New Tab	Ctrl + T	Cmd + T
Bookmark Page	Ctrl + D	Cmd + D
Bookmark Manager	Ctrl + B	Cmd + B
Find	Ctrl + F	Cmd + F
Zoom In	Ctrl + Plus	Cmd + Plus
Zoom Out	Ctrl + Minus	Cmd + Minus
Jump to Address Bar	Ctrl + L	Cmd + L
General Computer Use	Windows	Mac
Select All (files, words, etc)	Ctrl + A	Cmd + A
Copy (files, words, etc)	Ctrl + C	Cmd + C
Cut (moves instead of copying)	Ctrl + X	Cmd + X
Paste (moves the files, words)	Ctrl + V	Cmd + V
Find or Search (web, document)	Ctrl + F	Cmd + F
Undo last action	Ctrl + Z	Cmd + Z
Redo last action	Ctrl + Y	Shift + Cmd + Z
Switch Between Open Programs	Alt + Tab	Cmd + Tab
Lock Computer	Windows Logo + L	Must be configured
Show Desktop (minimize all)	Windows Logo + D	F11 or Cmd + Alt + M

Is there a shortcut you cannot live without? Share it with us in the comments.

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