As business owners, we understand that time is always of the essence (and that there are never enough hours in the day!). We have put together some tips & tricks to help you navigate Windows 11 more quickly, to give you more time to focus on those all-important tasks at hand.

We are assuming that you are already familiar with the common keyboard shortcuts such as Ctrl-C to copy, Ctrl-V to paste, and Alt-Tab to switch windows. One of the best things about Windows 11 is the number of powerful key combinations, which all make use of the Windows key. Let’s start with a few that have transitioned over from Windows 10, before looking at the all-new shortcuts for Windows 11.

Older Windows 10 Shortcuts

1. Take screenshots (Windows Key-Shift-S)

Pressing the Windows Key-Shift-S opens up the Snipping Tool which can take a screenshot of a shape you draw, a full window or an entire screen. Very useful when you are editing documents and want to share ideas with other employees.

2.  Paste history (Windows Key-V)

This is one of the best features in Windows history, being able to see your Clipboard history! By using this handy shortcut, you can copy several things from one document or webpage, and then paste them into another (without having to go to-and-from each time). It works with both text and images too, give it a go!

3. Special characters/emojis (Windows Key-.(period)

This shortcut opens up a hidden panel which allows you to explore emojis, special characters, symbols and GIFs at the touch of a button. It is also a much quicker way to enter accented characters and other symbols that aren’t on a standard keyboard. What’s more, is this shortcut also gives you access to your most recently used symbols.

4. Switch desktop (Ctrl-Windows Key-Left/Right Arrow)

To quickly move between desktops in Windows 11, you can continue to use the old Windows 10 shortcut – Ctrl-Windows Key-Left/Right Arrow. Once you know this tip, you will probably end up using it every day! (You can thank us later).

5. Task manager (Ctrl-Shift-Esc)

The perfect shortcut for when your PC starts to become a little sluggish and you want to see which application is taking up the most memory. When you need to kill applications, Task Manager is where you need to be!

Newer Windows 11 Shortcuts

1. Quick settings (Windows Key-A)

You know those settings that you always end up using regularly, such as Wi-Fi (connecting remotely), Bluetooth, Battery Saver, Focus Assist and many more… well now you can open all of these up quickly with the Quick Settings panel. You can also adjust screen brightness and speaker volume in this panel too, with a quick drag of the sliders.

2. Snap layouts (Windows Key-Z)

The snaps layout feature is the equivalent of hovering the mouse cursor over a window’s maximise button, but it is so much faster! You will see a choice of layouts when you hover over this button too, allowing you to pick the exact shape that you want to fit your current application into.

3. Resize to half screen (Windows Key-Alt-Up Arrow)

The perfect shortcut for those of us who like to multi-task. This key combination resizes the current application to exactly the top half of the screen. You can also use the Down, Left, or Right Arrow in replacement of the Up Arrow to fill exactly half of the screen with the app in those directions.

4. Cast media (Windows Key-K)

Wanting to share a document on a larger, wireless display? All you need to do is press Windows Key-K to screen your current window. There is also the option to add this shortcut to the Quick Settings panel if you aren’t good at remembering shortcuts!

5. Chat in Teams (Windows Key-C)

To open the personal version of Microsoft Teams chat, all you need to do is click the Windows Key-C. Now, while this may not be useful for professional users, this feature does allow you to text chat with SMS to phone users without having to set up an account.

Have you worked out any more productivity hacks and shortcuts for Windows 11? We would love to hear them!