How do I create a shortcut on the desktop? I was just migrated from a Windows machine to an Apple, which I was told would be seamless, but it's pretty seamy...

My tech (i.e., husband) told me I should drag-and-drop icons to the desktop to create a shortcut, since there's no dropdown-menu item saying "create shortcut."  However, all that did was move the file out of its logical spot into the desktop folder.  That is absolutely not what I want.

I'm having a hard enough time sorting folders by date or reverse alpha sort.  I don't know whether that's even possible using an Apple, but my first problem is the desktop shortcut.  For ergo-medical reasons, I definitely don't want to be navigating to my favorite folders, and I don't want to move them out of their logical places.
Drag an app to the desktop, and hold both command and option while you release it. This will create a shortcut much like those on Windows.

You can also try activating Spotlight (Apple's name for the search functionality) by pressing command + space. You can then type the first letters of the name of the app you need, then press enter to launch it. This could be even ergonomically better, as you don't need access to the desktop or to move your hand to the mouse.