Commands You'll Use Every Day
You don't need to memorize these. Just know they exist and bookmark this page for reference.
cc
Start Claude Code. Use this instead of "claude" for the safe, optimized version.
/btw
Quick side question without using tokens from your main task. Ask something fast, get an answer, stay focused.
Escape
Stop Claude in the middle and redirect. If Claude is going the wrong way, press Escape and rephrase.
handoff
Save progress when you're done for the day. Creates a summary so you pick up exactly where you left off next time.
Most of these you'll pick up naturally. The key ones to remember: cc to start, and handoff to save your work.
Understanding context usage
The status bar at the bottom shows your context usage as a percentage. Think of it as how full your conversation is. As you work, it fills up.
When it reaches around 50%, type handoff. Claude saves everything to a file so your next session picks up exactly where you left off. Then type /exit and start fresh with cc.
Do not wait for it to fill up completely. When context gets too full, Claude automatically compresses the conversation to make room. This compression can lose important details about what you were working on, leading to mistakes and repeated work. A clean handoff at 50% preserves everything perfectly.