I believe that the key to being proficient using any software is not being afraid of it. In other words, you need to take the time to learn what an application has inside and how to use those features effectively. Microsoft Office is not exception. Here's what Stuart J. Stuple said about it in his post called "Ten Things I Wish Everyone Knew About Word" found on the Joe Friend blog:
| "Mastering Word isn’t about understanding the architecture or the intent of the designers; it’s about finding the features and shortcuts that make your day-to-day job easier." |
The only one I don't agree with is #9 "Show or hide the gridlines for tables." I don't believe knowing about this adds anything important to your reportoire. It's nice to know you can hide gridlines, but you can also use Print Preview to see how a table looks without them, too.
But definitely pay attention to the other nine things he list. If you don't already know about them, you will find yourself more productive by adding them to your Word game.