10 bad Windows habits you need to break (and what to do instead)

We all have bad habits. On a Windows PC, it’s easy to fall into patterns that are “good enough” — they get the job done but may not be the fastest or easiest way to achieve your goals.

It’s not that these habits are wrong — it’s that some things are just a bit slow and inefficient. But with a few simple changes, you can transform the way you use your PC, speed up your workflow, and have a better all-around computing experience.

Here are the habits I think you should consider breaking — and the transformations I recommend.

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1. Clicking to open apps from the Start menu

Clicking through the Windows Start menu isn’t the best way to open apps. If you find yourself scrolling through the list of all apps and trying to remember the precise name of a particular application shortcut, you’re wasting time.

Instead, use search — type the name of an app into the Start menu. Pin applications you use to your taskbar — or at least pin them to the top of the Start menu so they’re easy to access. Consider creating a custom keyboard shortcut for the applications you launch most, too — it’s easy.

2. Digging for folders the slow way in File Explorer

It’s easy to find yourself clicking repeatedly through the same folders each time you open File Explorer. Even if you know exactly where to look and are not wondering “Where’d I put that…?” the repeated clicks just aren’t very efficient.

Instead, make those important folders easier to access without a lot of clicking. If a folder is important to you, right-click it in File Explorer and select “Pin to Quick Access.” After that, it’ll be easily accessible in File Explorer’s sidebar.

Folders you pin in this way will also show up when you right-click File Explorer’s icon on your taskbar thanks to jump lists, and they’ll appear in file Open and Save dialogs throughout Windows — you’ll see the same sidebar at the left side of the dialog window.

You can also drag and drop folders right to the left sidebar to pin them.
Chris Hoffman / Foundry

3. Hunting down settings screen by screen

It happens to me, too: You find yourself slowly clicking through the Settings app, looking for That One Particular SettingTM. Where exactly is it? Even if you remember, you may have to click through a variety of screens, one after another. There’s a better way.

Instead, use the search feature to find settings: Just type whatever you’re looking for in the search box in the Settings app. You can also press Windows+I (that’s the letter “i”) to launch the Settings app from anywhere and start typing to search.

The Settings app can even help you find other settings-related items, like the Device Manager — even if they aren’t technically in the new Settings app itself.

4. Sticking with the default Start menu and taskbar

I’ve seen it over and over: So many people never really customize their taskbar or Start menu. That’s a huge mistake. The default taskbar is often full of pinned apps you don’t need — junk from Microsoft and your PC’s manufacturer — as is the default Start menu.

You can make your taskbar and Start menu feel more like your own — and you should.

To take control, start by unpinning the taskbar icons you don’t want — right-click each and select “Unpin from taskbar.” In the Start menu, do the same in the pinned items area — right-click something and select “Unpin from Start.” Then, pin the shortcuts you do want there.

You can configure more than just which apps appear in your Start menu and taskbar, too. For example, on Windows 11, head to Settings > Personalization > Start to customize exactly what shows up in the Start menu — you may want to hide recommended items, for example. To do the same thing for your taskbar, head to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar to adjust what appears there — perhaps you’d rather not see the Widgets icon, for one thing.

You might also want to skip Microsoft’s Start menu entirely and turn to a third-party Start menu replacement or try something like Command Palette. The choice is up to you.

Microsoft offers some alternative launchers you may prefer to the Start menu, such as Command Palette.Chris Hoffman / Foundry

5. Manually positioning and resizing windows

While you can drag windows around on your screen and resize them by clicking and dragging, that’s not exactly the most efficient way to use a Windows PC.

Instead, turn to the built-in Snap feature — which is easy to use with drag and drop, shortcuts like Windows+Left arrow and Windows+Right arrow, or even Windows+Z on Windows 11.

But Snap is just one option. If you have a larger monitor or just more advanced needs, Microsoft’s FancyZones PowerToy is an excellent way to take control over how window positioning works on your PC. It can even automatically move windows to their last known zone on screen when you launch them. PowerToys Workspaces is also a quick and easy way to launch a variety of apps from one shortcut, automatically positioning them where you like them.

6. Copy-pasting the tedious way

Want to copy paste? That usually means Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V — or the Copy/Paste buttons. But there are better ways.

I really do recommend using the clipboard history built into Windows — launch it by pressing Windows+V. Here, you’ll find items you recently copied so you can easily insert them without hunting for them again. It also lets you pin items (text and images) that you frequently paste to save yourself time in the future.

Clipboard History is probably one of the most underappreciated features on a modern Windows PC.
Chris Hoffman / Foundry

The Clipboard History tool also helps you quickly paste something without formatting — something that can be very annoying on Windows. In many apps — like Google Chrome, for example — the Ctrl+Shift+V shortcut will quickly paste without formatting (paste as plaintext), too.

For an even more advanced clipboard manager, try Ditto.

7. Capturing screenshots the hard way

You don’t have to capture a full-screen screenshot and cut out the bit you want anymore. Windows now offers a much easier way to do this.

When you want to share just a small part of your screen, press Windows+Shift+S (or Print Screen) and draw a rectangle around whatever you want to capture. (After pressing the shortcut, you may have to use the options on the bar at the top of the screen to select “Rectangle.” You can then quickly paste that into whatever app you like.

8. Letting your startup apps pick themselves

Many applications on Windows add startup tasks — which’ll pop up when you sign in — making the login process take longer, cluttering your system tray, and just wasting system resources if you don’t need them. But Windows lets you quickly control this from a central place.

I prefer using the Task Manager for this — right-click an empty spot on your taskbar and select “Task Manager” or press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to launch it. Then, click the “Startup” tab (you may have to click “More details” first on Windows 10). Go through the list of items here and disable any you don’t need — just right-click an item and select “Disable” to stop it from running when you sign in. For more information, right-click an item and select “Search online” — that may help you identify what it does, if you’re not sure.

You almost certainly don’t need both Microsoft Copilots running in the background.
Chris Hoffman / Foundry

9. Always using the mouse

When you aren’t in the habit of using keyboard shortcuts — or you just don’t know them all — it’s easy to use the mouse all the time. But it’s worth learning at least a few powerful keyboard shortcuts, which will gradually boost your PC-using speeds.

Start with some basics like Windows+E to launch File Explorer, Ctrl+Shift+Esc to launch Task Manager, and Windows+I (the letter “i”) to launch Settings. And be sure to use Windows+. or Windows+; (that’s a period or semicolon) to launch the emoji panel, too — that’s a useful one.

That is just the tip of the iceberg, also —  Windows is packed with keyboard shortcuts, so I recommend thinking about the tasks you perform most frequently and looking up the keyboard shortcuts for those, as well.

10. Rebooting to fix File Explorer, desktop, or taskbar problems

A quick reboot can fix a lot of problems on your PC. But that reboot may not be quite so quick if you have to save your work and then reopen all your programs after your PC restarts.

Luckily, you can fix lots of little issues right from the Task Manager. Launch it with Ctrl+Shift+Esc. Then, click over to the “Details” list.

On Windows 11, search for “Explorer” at the top of the window. On Windows 10, you will have to hunt down “explorer.exe” in the list. Right-click the explorer.exe process and select “Restart.” Windows will restart the Explorer process that handles the desktop, taskbar, and File Explorer windows —this can fix a bunch of issues, and save you from a full reboot.

The Task Manager will help you find and fix lots of other issues, too. For example, if an application is using a lot of CPU or memory, find it in the process list and axe it.

The “Restart” option only appears for the Explorer.exe process.
Chris Hoffman / Foundry

Break the patterns and speed up your Windows workflow

These tips only scratch the surface of what you can do, and if even one of them inspired you to find a new, quicker way to use your PC, I promise the efficiency upgrade will be worth it.

More importantly, I encourage you to identify the things you’re doing on your PC that just aren’t working for you. If you find yourself using a workflow that seems inefficient or just plain annoying, consider looking for a better way. Windows PCs are incredibly flexible tools.

For more productivity upgrades, be sure to dig deep into Microsoft’s free PowerToys package. I mentioned FancyZones, Workspaces, and Command Palette above, but there are so many more excellent tools in that package.

This is just the start! Sign up for my free Windows Intelligence newsletter today and I’ll send you three new things to try each Friday. Plus, you’ll get free copies of Paul Thurrott’s Windows Field Guides as a welcome gift.