There are some Microsoft Office features that seem like annoyances. Then, there are the Office settings you can always optimize. One of the first that pops up is the Backstage View. You can also call it the File menu.

The Backstage screen has its uses if you save files to your OneDrive folder. If you don't save files to the cloud, then it is just one more hurdle for your peak productivity.

Backstage View

Let's jump over this with a small change in one Office setting.

Configure Microsoft Office

You can directly save files to your local folder by clicking the File icon on the Quick Access toolbar at the top. The Backstage View can be made to disappear in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. With the Backstage screen gone, you can directly open the Save As dialog box when selecting either Save or Save As for a new file.

Do note that this changing this setting in one Office application, changes it for the others like Excel and PowerPoint automatically.

Click the File tab. From the Menu on the left, go to Options.

Microsoft Word Backstage View

In the Options dialog box, click Save in the list of settings on the left.

Under the Save documents section, put a check to select the Don’t show the Backstage when opening or saving files setting. Click OK to accept the change.

Backstage View-Setting

Even though you have disabled the Backstage view now, this does not seem to apply when opening files. To open a file, you have to take the old route of clicking the File tab to bring up the Backstage View. A way to open a file by bypassing it is to use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + O. This will directly display the Open dialog box.

A Little Second of Productivity

The Backstage View is important for a few reasons. Like its name, you use this screen to do a few background tasks on a file. For instance, recovering an unsaved document could be the most critical feature here.

But this small tweak gives back a second here and there when saving a file. This is not a huge change in your workflow as the File menu is always within reach of a click. But the seconds add up.

Do you find the Backstage View to be irritating sometimes?