Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on Twitter.

As someone who does most of his work on the web, I’ve developed some habits to allow me to work quickly, without distraction, so that I can get my work done easily.

When I see others browse the web, it sometimes surprises me how far behind they are, and when others see me browse the web they’re surprised at how quick I am.

I’m not bragging — I know there are web monkeys faster than me. But I thought I’d share some of my tricks for the masses, in hopes that it’ll be of some use.

First, understand that everyone has their own personal style of browsing, and I don’t think you should adopt every tip below. This is what works for me. You probably won’t like it as much.

Second, understand that my philosophy is one of minimalism: I don’t like a lot of bells, whistles or distractions, and I like fast, lightweight programs that aren’t bloated or slow. I also like to work quickly, using the keyboard mostly, so that I can get my work done without friction.

So here are my tips — some of these will be old hat for web veterans, but they bear repeating.

1. Use a fast, minimal browser. First, if you’re using Internet Explorer and you don’t absolutely have to, please do yourself a favor and switch right now. It’s bloated and slow, insecure, and doesn’t render the web correctly. If you can’t switch, please start educating your IT or HR department about modern, standards-compliant browsers. Second, I’ve long been a fan of Firefox because it’s generally awesome and extensible, but lately I’ve switched to faster and lighter browsers that do what I need with a minimum of bloat. So on the Mac, that’s been Opera and lately Camino. Both are great and do what I need. On the PC, there’s no contest — it’s Google Chrome, as it’s the fastest I’ve tried. » Continue your journey »