Feeling like your Mac is running slower than molasses? Before you reach for a system cleaner, try using Activity Monitor! This built-in Mac utility is your free diagnostic tool for uncovering performance bottlenecks.
Think of Activity Monitor as your Mac's inner workings laid bare. You can see exactly which applications and processes are hogging your CPU, memory, energy, disk, and network resources.
**How to find it:** Simply search for "Activity Monitor" using Spotlight (Command + Spacebar).
**What to look for:** Pay close attention to the "% CPU" column. If a process is consistently using a high percentage, it could be the culprit behind your Mac's sluggishness. Similarly, monitor the "Memory" tab to see which apps are consuming the most RAM. If you see apps you're not using taking up lots of memory, consider quitting them.
Activity Monitor isn't just for identifying problems. It's also a great way to understand how your Mac works and manage its resources more effectively. So, next time your Mac is feeling slow, take a peek inside and see what you can discover!
