Whenever I start a new text document or blog post the first thing I do is press enter several times. About half a page worth.

Preserves Formatting

The first thing this does is to ensure that my document is all the same font size and style throughout the document. There have been times that within the document I bold or change the font color of one particular word or heading. The text that follows that deviation of font should return back to the original font style. This can sometimes be frustrating to figure out what the original font style was. Since I have space BELOW the special font that is in the original font style I simply need to press the down arrow.

Inserting Images or Tables

Sometimes after you insert an image or table into a document or Web 2.0 tool (such as this WordPress) it can be tricky to get your cursor UNDER the inserted item. Before I insert anything I always make sure that I have pushed enter several times and am inserting in between carriage returns. Then I never have a problem getting underneath what I inserted.

Collaborating

If you are collaborating with someone on a document, you do not want to be fighting for the same cursor space. By pushing enter several times each person can easily find their own line to type on.

Before You Format

My tip is to never format (bold, underline, change font size, etc…) until after you have pushed enter several times first. This will save you time in the long run.

Delete the Extras

When you finalize your document you can push the backspace key and delete all of the extra returns at the bottom.