How Windows 10 Can Make You (and Your Business) a Productivity Machine

Knowing a few tips and tricks can save you hours per week when it comes to your PC workflow. Windows 10 was designed to enhance user experience and basically make tasks easier to accomplish.

But unless you’ve thoroughly explored everything there is to know about this operating system, you or your staff might not be aware of all the great productivity-enhancing tricks that Windows 10 offers.

As a Microsoft Partner, BrainStomp knows Windows inside and out and we’re here to reveal our favorite Windows 10 tips for productivity so you can make the most of them!

Upgrade Your Productivity in Windows 10

75 percent of U.S. employees don’t believe they have access to the latest in efficiency tools to help them do their jobs as well as possible. But it’s possible that many just haven’t yet discovered everything that the tools they do have can do.

Happy workers are 12 percent more productive and being able to get through tasks faster can help remove frustration and boost that happiness quotient.  

Try sharing some of these tips for more productivity power.

1. Stop Distractions with Focus Assistant

Constant interruptions are frustrating and seriously drag down productivity. Studies show it takes an average of 23 minutes to recover from an interruption and get back to the mental space you were in before it happened.

Focus Assistant in Windows 10 helps you take control of notifications for incoming emails, apps, texts, alerts, VoIP calls, and more. You can control them in some key ways: 

·     Turn them all off during certain times of day

·     Prioritize which you want to show and which you don’t

·     Hide all notifications and show alarms only

·     Only show notifications from certain people

Get there by clicking the Windows Start icon and typing “Focus” into the search bar.

2. Get More Space with Virtual Desktops

In the course of a busy workday, you can have multiple Windows open trying to get things done, which can lead to “lost windows” and time wasted trying to click around until you find the one you need. 

The Virtual Desktops feature in Windows 10 helps you keep everything organized by allowing you to use multiple different desktops. For example, you could have your email open in one, your cloud-based CRM program and live chat in another, and a document you’re working on a third.  

Click the Task View icon in your task bar, then click the “+ New desktop” to add a new one. You can toggle between them using the Task View or Windows Key + Ctrl + Left Arrow and Windows Key + Ctrl + Right Arrow.

3. Print to PDF

This might seem like simple feature, but it saves a whole lot of time when you need to export to a PDF from a Word document, webpage, or anything else you might have open. 

Windows 10 shortens the workflow by removing the need to use a third-party application to create a PDF from a document. And it’s natively built in, which means it will work in anything, not just particular apps.

When you go to File > Print, choose “Microsoft Print to PDF” as the Printer.

4. Get a Master Control Panel in “GodMode”

One of the more secret tricks in Windows 10 is what’s referred to as “GodMode.” It’s a folder that you can create that gives you instant access to multiple optimization and program settings and features without having to search them out in the Settings area. 

You can activate this feature by right-clicking on your desktop and creating a new folder.

Name the folder: GodMode.

The icon will then change into a control panel.

Open the folder, and you’ll get all sorts of program tasks that you can execute from that one place. It’s also organized by category, making it even easier to locate what you need fast.  

5. Find Programs & Pages Recently Used in Task View

You just had that website open with some information you needed for a presentation, but you closed it and can’t find it again… or can you? Besides being used to create and toggle between virtual desktops, Task View is incredibly helpful for jumping to one of your open windows or searching for one you recently closed. 

Just open Task View from your tool bar and you’ll see at the top the currently open programs and windows. Just click to jump to one of them. Scroll down and you’ll also see a timeline of past open windows that can make it simple to get back to that webpage you were looking through two days ago.

6. Use the Pin Feature to Pin Settings, People, Documents

How much time to do you spend navigating to things like settings, files or contacts? Windows 10 has a Pin feature that works throughout the OS in several different areas to save you time.

Here are some examples:

·     In a program like Word, you can Pin documents you use most often to show at the top of the open file dialogue box. 

·     In Settings, if there is a specific one you use often, like desktop personalization, you can pin it to your Start menu.

·     Are there certain contacts that you want to always receive notifications from? You can open the People app from Start and pin those contacts to your taskbar. Then when you’re using Focus Assistant you can choose those contacts as a priority.

Need More Productivity Boosting Help at Your Office?

BrainStomp’s team of office efficiency experts can help you with multiple IT solutions that can streamline your operations, save you money, and boost productivity.

Contact us today to schedule your consultation and take the first step towards a more streamlined office. Call us at 260-918-3548 or reach out online.