Let’s face it–the world we live in is incredibly fast-paced. At times, it can feel like twenty-four hours are simply not enough to finish your to-do list. When you’re feeling like this, you may find yourself searching for methods that can help you work smarter, not harder. After all, the ultimate goal is to take your productivity to the next level.
Whether you’re a student juggling multiple courses or a 9-to-5 employee trying to find work-life balance, spending more time on a task than needed is no one’s cup of tea.
Fortunately, Apple hears you. Over the last few years, the company has consistently directed its efforts toward introducing features that help Mac users maximize their productivity. Whether you’re deep into the Apple ecosystem or are just buying your first Mac, we’ve got you covered.
Use Focus Modes on Your Mac
Did you purchase a Mac with the intention of turning it into a productivity beast, just to get distracted within seconds? If you’re looking for a feature to filter out unwanted distractions, you should definitely explore Focus.
Apple released Focus alongside macOS Monterey, allowing users to filter out notifications they’d like to silence and receive. It works quite similarly to the Do Not Disturb feature, a feature Apple released in 2012.
However, what makes Focus different from this feature is the fact that you can create separate profiles for different aspects of your life. For instance, you can pick from preset Focus modes like Work or Sleep, among other profiles. Or, you can create your own Focus profile based on your requirements.
You can also schedule your Focus modes to turn on automatically based on Time, Location, or App. To enable a Focus mode on your Mac. So, if you’re someone who only studies when you’re at a cafe or a library, or work at a specific time, this feature can really come in handy.
To enable Focus, open the Control Center icon in the menu bar. Now, click on the Focus button and choose a Focus profile. If you’d like to create a new one, select Focus settings… from the drop-down menu instead.
You’ll now be redirected to System Settings. Scroll all the way down, and click the Add Focus… button. Now, simply customize it according to your preferences.
Explore Mac Keyboard Shortcuts
Another way to spend less time working on tasks is to spend some time learning different keyboard shortcuts. Although learning them won’t make a massive difference and transform your workflow entirely, they can help you save tons of time and effort in the long run.
While we can’t possibly list all the combinations available, here are a few useful Mac keyboard shortcuts you should know:
- To display the screenshot toolbar: CMD + 5
- Close all your windows: CMD + Option + W
- To find something on any page: CMD + F
- To find and replace: Option + CMD + F
- Paste without formatting: Shift + Option + CMD + V
- Switch to the next app: CMD + Tab
- Quit an app: CMD + Shift + Q
- Force quit an app: Option + CMD + ESC
Tweak Your Mac’s Keyboard Settings
You can also tweak your Mac’s keyboard settings and toggle on multiple features that can improve your productivity. For instance, try setting up text replacement shortcuts. This feature can particularly come in handy if you have a long sentence or phrase that you type frequently.
Instead of spending a couple of seconds typing it out, you can simply create a text replacement shortcut, and type it instead. To create one, click the Apple menu in the menu bar, and select System Settings from the drop-down menu. Now, select Keyboard from the sidebar on the left. Click the Text Replacements button. and click the plus (+) button to create a shortcut.
If you’ve recently switched from Windows to macOS, adjusting to a new operating system can be a challenge. One major feature you’ll need to adjust to is a Mac’s keyboard. Unlike a Windows PC keyboard, you’ll notice a Command key on your Mac’s keyboard. Similarly, while a Mac’s keyboard has a Control key, it doesn’t work the same way as a Windows computer Control key. Strange, right?
If this is something you’re not able to adjust to and is something that slows you down, you can also customize the modifier keys on the Keyboard settings page. Instead of clicking the Text Replacements button, click the Keyboard Shortcuts button. Then, select Modifier Keys from the sidebar and modify any modifier key of your choice. These are only two settings you can tweak. I suggest spending some time exploring the Keyboard settings and experimenting around a bit.
Sync Your Devices to Maximize the Apple ecosystem
If you own multiple Apple devices, you’re seriously missing out if you aren’t taking complete advantage of the Apple ecosystem. Given that you’re signed into the same Apple ID across all your devices, you can head to your iPhone, iPad, or Mac’s iCloud menu and enable syncing. For example, all your messages, photos, videos, contacts, voice memos, and much more, can sync across all your Apple devices.
Did you take an image on your iPhone and need to edit it on your Mac? Instead of emailing it to yourself or uploading it to Google Drive, a better option would be to use AirDrop! Similarly, if you have Handoff enabled on your Apple devices, you can copy content on one device and paste it on the other. You can also begin tasks (like reading an article on Safari) on one device, and pick off on another device.
If you have an iPad, you can use Universal Control to use one keyboard with your Mac and iPad. Similarly, if you’d like to experience what it is like using an external monitor, you can turn your iPad into a second monitor using SideCar. While Apple products are great standalone devices, they shine brightest when used together.
Use Split View and Stage Manager
When you’re working on multiple tasks simultaneously, switching from one window to another can be a hassle. While it won’t affect you too much if you’re working on a simple task, it can slow you down if you’re working on a complex task like conducting research for an essay or editing a video.
Fortunately, macOS offers multitasking features like Split View and Stage Manager. The former allows you to display two windows side-by-side with a partition separating them. On the other hand, the latter allows you to focus on one app at a time, while your other recently used applications will move to the left side of the screen to allow you to access them quickly.
Apple also introduced a new feature called Window Tiling with macOS Sequoia, which will be released later this fall. This feature will allow you to arrange different windows into tiles on your desktop.
All in all, I definitely recommend taking the time out and exploring the productivity features I’ve mentioned above. They’ve completely transformed my workflow for the better, and have helped me spend less time on tasks than needed.