Perhaps the most well known keyboard shortcuts in the computer universe are the commands to copy (Ctrl+C) and paste (Ctrl+V). An average computer user probably utilizes these shortcuts dozens of times a day without even thinking. In fact, this shortcut is so ubiquitous that it most likely works in places you haven’t tried.

For example, the other day I discovered (in a particular program I use) that I could click on a chart object, press Ctrl+C and then go to Excel and paste the source data of the grid there. No fuss, the raw data is now available in Excel so I can do any manipulations I need.

The moral of this story is to just try the Ctrl+C shortcut everywhere, even if it doesn’t look like the application supports it. You never know where it may work.