Tuesday, May 2, 2017

A Few More Tricks…

Excel Tricks can be a seemingly magical way to save time and look Cool (and, of course, looking “Cool” is the most important…) in Excel. Here are a few of my current favorites:

1. Select Non-contiguous Cells and Ranges
We all know how to select contiguous cells in a range or database, but how about non-contiguous cells?  Selecting these cells in a worksheet is as simple as holding down the CTRL key and click on the cells you want.  Presto!

2. Enter in Bulk
Let’s say you want to enter the same numbers or same text in a block of cells. There are a number of tedious ways of doing this, but if you want to save your wrist and look Totally Cool in the process, you can do the following:
    a) Select the entire range of cells you want to contain the same content
    b) Type your words or values (be sure to do this while having the entire block of cells selected)
    c) Press CTRL+ENTER and Bamm - That’s it!

3. Align Text Your Way!
Right-Click and access the Alignment tab on Format Cells. It’s a Snap aligning your cell in any orientation you want.  For instance, do you want the text in your cell to be vertically oriented?  Just click the Vertical Orientation Graphic, and Boom, mission accomplished!

4. Jump Between Worksheets
To move from worksheet to another does not mean you need to reach for your mouse.  To switch to the next worksheet to the left, keep your hands on the keyboard and simply enter Ctrl + Page Up. Or change to the worksheet to the right by entering Ctrl + Page Down. Nice!

5. Use Your Chart in Another App
Do you want to use your chart in PowerPoint, Word, or some other application? Select your chart and Copy/Paste as a Picture.  You can then feel assured that it will stay true to the original.  Easy Magic (and “Easy” is always a good thing…).

Tricks, Tricks, Tricks! Every Excel Guru should have a sack of them! 

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