Loading keyboard shortcuts onto a large programmable keyboard is the best productivity hack I’ve ever done.
Down the keyboard shortcut rabbit hole
I first got into keyboard shortcuts with simple macOS triggers, like @@ with my primary email address, and others similar to my full name, home address, phone number, zip code, and so on.
Then I decided to take things up a notch with Keyboard Maestro and started setting up keyboard shortcuts to open a few folders and programs that I used frequently.
From Desktop to Downloads to work-related folders, it’s been pure muscle memory to compress Fn+F1 all the way to Fn+F6to land instantly where it used to take me a few clicks before. Other function keys were dedicated to opening common programs and websites, as well as accessing Keyboard Maestro’s Clipboard History Changer.
That evolved into automating some of my workflow, including opening QuickTime and starting a new audio recording, as well as opening the Shure PlusMOTIV whenever I plugged in a specific USB-C microphone.
Soon, I was also programming custom shortcuts for tools, settings, and panels in Adobe Audition, some of which I quickly moved to my Logitech MX Master for quick editing.
Kicking things up a notch
This setup worked fine for me for a long time, until one day, 9 on 5 MacGui Rambo himself told me about a large macro keyboard, with 12 keys and three knobs that he bought. I was sold, and I did exactly the same thing.
When it arrived, I quickly learned that setting it up to work properly on macOS required a little more work. Thankfully, this GitHub project did all the heavy lifting, and ChatGPT did the rest to help me get set up properly.
One good thing about this setup is that having a custom keyboard to invoke Keyboard Maestro shortcuts means you don’t have to memorize them or keep them ergonomically friendly.
And because this particular keyboard allows you to have 12 keyboard shortcuts, and shortcuts, which can act as buttons, it means that I can make it behave one way when I’m using Adobe Audition, and a completely different way when I’m interacting with the program.
If you use Adobe Audition, using this macro keyboard integrated with MX Master make switching between instruments, sending files (or just certain parts), applying effects such as normalization, compression, deReverb, deEsser, removing ripple, and much more, orders of magnitude faster and easier than normal keyboard shortcuts, or, it is not prohibited at all.
When using the system, I can use the same keyboard on a different layer to change audio input, adjust volume, adjust display brightness, mute/unmute the microphone, and access frequently used folders with ease.
Admittedly, it took me a little while to memorize all of these instructions, but that becomes second nature sooner than you might think. Plus, it honestly feels like the Mac is broken when I have to work without it.
In addition, there are many configurations and options for large keypads, with different shapes, sizes, keys, knobs, light colors, and much more. This is a rabbit hole that feels truly endless, and if your job involves any repetitive actions (and whose doesn’t?), I sincerely suggest you take a look inside.
It’s worth checking out on Amazon
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