When I run ls, I run it as ls -lAhog:

• l says to put each file or folder on its own line
• A says to list all files – hidden files, backups, etc. – but omit the current directory (.) and the parent directory (..)
• h says to use human readable file sizes – 1.5G instead of 1628688384
• g says to omit the user
• o says to omit the group

Occasionally I use the -R parameter, which lists folders and subfolders recursively.