Most people use their tools the way they’d use a piano: playing with two fingers. Not because the piano doesn’t have more keys, but because they never sat down to explore what else it can do. And when the two-finger melody bores or limits them, instead of learning to use more keys they buy another piano. Different brand, different colour, same two fingers. The result is predictable: the same limitation in a new wrapper.

The 80% You Never Touch

Modern productivity tools are extraordinarily powerful. The notes app you use can probably do templates, bidirectional links, databases, automations and a dozen things you’ve never explored. Your word processor has styles, macros, version comparison and collaboration features you don’t know about. Your email client has filters, automatic rules and smart labelling you’ve never configured.

This isn’t a criticism — it’s a statistical observation. Most users utilise less than 20% of their tools’ features. And that remaining 80% aren’t exotic functions for advanced users. They’re functions that would solve problems you have right now but that you solve through workarounds — often by adopting another tool.

It’s ironic: the feature you’re looking for in another app probably already exists in the one you have. But since you never explored beyond the surface, you don’t know. And since you don’t know, you add another tool, add another layer of complexity, and your system becomes a little more fragile without you having gained anything real.

The point isn’t that you should use every feature of every tool — many you don’t need. The point is that before deciding a tool can’t do something, you should verify that it truly can’t. And that requires a level of exploration that most people skip.

Depth Vs Diversity

There are two possible strategies for improving your digital productivity: diversify or deepen. Diversifying means using more tools, each for a specific micro-function. Deepening means using fewer tools, but knowing each one thoroughly.

The industry pushes you towards diversification because every new tool is a new subscription, a new user, a new data point. But real productivity lives in deepening.

Depth creates fluency. When you know a tool inside out, your working speed increases exponentially. Shortcuts become automatic, flows chain without thought, solutions appear without searching. That fluency is impossible with a tool you use superficially.

Depth creates creativity. Knowing a tool’s real capabilities lets you combine them in ways the surface user can’t imagine. You see possibilities where others see limitations — because you know what the tool can do when used with intention.

Depth creates resilience. When a new problem or need arises, the deep user looks for the solution within what they already have. The surface user looks for another tool. The result is that the former keeps their system simple and the latter makes it more complex.

Depth creates confidence. When you’ve mastered a tool, you trust it. You know that what you put there stays, that you can find it, that the system works. That confidence eliminates the background anxiety produced by a system you don’t know well.

How To Master A Tool

Mastering doesn’t mean knowing every feature or reading all the documentation. It means knowing thoroughly the features you need and knowing enough about the rest to activate them when needed.

Dedicate an hour to exploring. Open your main tool and go through the menus, the preferences, the options you’ve never touched. Without pressure, without a specific goal — just explore. You’ll discover features you didn’t know existed that solve problems you’ve been solving with workarounds for months.

Learn five new shortcuts. Keyboard shortcuts are the most direct indicator of your mastery level. A user who uses shortcuts works between 30% and 50% faster than one who uses the mouse for everything. You don’t need to learn them all — start with the five you’d use most.

Read the official documentation. Not all of it — the “advanced features” or “productivity tips” section. Developers write that documentation because they know most users under-utilise their product. Take advantage of it.

Look for advanced user workflows. On YouTube, forums or specialist blogs there are users who’ve been with the same tool for years and have developed sophisticated workflows. Don’t copy their flows — let them inspire you to create your own.

Customise. Adapt the tool to your way of working: change the default view, configure preferences, create templates for your most frequent tasks. A customised tool is one that works for you instead of forcing you to adapt to it.

When Depth Solves The Problem

The most direct test of the value of going deep is this: the next time you think “I need another tool for this,” stop and ask “can my current tool do something similar?” Search for ten minutes before answering.

In most cases, the answer is yes. Not always in the exact way you imagined, not always with the interface you’d prefer, but in a way that works. And a solution that works within your existing system is always better than a perfect solution that requires adding another piece to the system.

Some common examples:

  • “I need a habit-tracking app” → Your calendar or task app has recurrence features that serve the same purpose.
  • “I need a project manager” → Your notes app with a few folders and a template can cover the same function for personal projects.
  • “I need an app to save articles” → Your notes app with a dedicated notebook and copied links serves the same purpose.

It doesn’t always work. Sometimes you genuinely need something your current tool can’t offer. But the rule should be: exhaust depth before resorting to diversity. Make switching the last option, not the first.

Mastering a tool is an investment with increasing returns. Every hour you spend going deeper gives you back minutes of efficiency for months. Every tool you don’t add saves you hours of migration, learning and maintenance. The equation is clear — the hard part is resisting the temptation of the new when what you already have still has so much to offer.