Excel Tips: Spreadsheets Don’t Have to be Scary

• Using click and drag & double-click
• Formatting numbers
• Creating simple formulas
• Outlining your data
• Adding new sheets

Know your quick keys.Of all our Excel tips and tricks, learning basic quick keys is a skill that can help you the most. Your mouse makes navigating around your screen incredibly easy, but if you can move around without taking your hand off the keyboard you’ll be even faster. Learn the basic quick keys of Excel to improve your speed and efficiency when building out a spreadsheet. We’ve made a short list of some of the basic quick keys that a beginner should know when starting to use Excel:

• Copy: Ctrl+C
• Cut: Ctrl+X
• Paste: Ctrl+V
• Select all (highlights all your data): Ctrl+A
• Move quickly across data: Ctrl+arrow
• Highlight groups of data: Ctrl+Shift+arrow

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Save time with a click and drag or a double-click. Using Ctrl+C (cut) and Ctrl+V (paste) can be really fast, but it’s not always the fastest option. Sometimes, you can copy and paste much faster by using the click-and-drag feature with the fill handle (the tiny square in the bottom-right corner of your highlighted cell). You can copy a single cell into cells adjacent to your highlighted cell. If you’re working with a sequence of numbers (2, 4, 6, etc.), highlight the group that’s established the sequence before proceeding. Hover your mouse over this corner until the white plus cursor turns into a thin black plus. Drag the corner down to the cell where you’d like the numbers to end. If you’re copying a single number, every cell will be filled with the number. If you’re copying a sequence, it’ll fill in with the sequence.

Tip: If you have already established the bottom row of your chart, you can simply double-click the corner of the cell and Excel will fill in the space to the bottom row without dragging the corner of the cell.

Number formats identify your data. You’re not always dealing with consistent number formats when making a spreadsheet. Sometimes you have hours, percentages, money, or any other number of things you want to track. You can easily format your numbers based on what you want them to show by using the buttons in the “Number” group. If you’re dealing in something other than U.S. dollars, click the down arrow next to the “$” and select anything from pounds to Bitcoin. This can be helpful when tracking payments or building a budget.

Dealing with decimals is also easy as you can quickly turn them into percentages or manage the size of your number by moving the decimal point to the left or right, depending on your number. If you have a group of numbers you need to format, simply click one cell, drag the box to highlight your data set, then choose your format.

Create simple formulas. One of the most common uses of a spreadsheet is to help with budgeting. You can create formulas that calculate complex equations with a single input. The most important part of creating an equation is remembering to lead with an equal (=) sign. If you don’t start your equation correctly then it won’t be anything besides a cell with letters and numbers. After you type the equals sign, move forward with the rest of your equation. When you’re including other cells in your equation, you can click the cell that you’d like in a specific place. This is much easier than moving your eyes over and down your spreadsheet and makes for better accuracy. Your equations can use any function you’d like.

Tip: If you’re having trouble getting the equation right, head to the “Formulas” tab, then click “Insert Function” to look for the equation you’d like to use. This tab also has an “AutoSum” feature that makes it easy to add data, calculate averages, and more.

Outline your data. It’s not uncommon to put more than one information set in a single spreadsheet. You might want to track your budget over several months, log payments to various loans, or consolidate other information in one place. Make it easy to separate your data by outlining it. Under the “Font” grouping, you’ll see an icon with a small box that’s broken into four quarters. Follow these steps to outline your data:

• Highlight your data.
• Click the dropdown arrow next to the border icon.
• Decide which border you’d like to use to outline your data.

You’ll then have neatly organized information that’s kept separate from the rest of your spreadsheet.

Add, name, hide, and unhide additional sheets to a single file. When working in word processors or presentation software, you have to open an entirely new document to start with a fresh sheet. In Excel, you can simply add a new sheet by clicking the circled plus sign at the bottom of your window. This allows you to manage multiple spreadsheets within a single document to keep it more organized and easily move information across sheets. Separate your sheets with names by right-clicking on the sheet and selecting “Rename.”

If you decide you’re finished with a specific sheet but don’t want to delete it, you can hide the sheet by right-clicking and selecting “Hide.” Should you decide you want to look at a hidden sheet, follow the same steps to unhide it. The difference is that when you unhide a sheet, you’ll have to select it from a small popup window.

When in doubt, you can also watch these helpful videos online. Don’t want to start a spreadsheet from scratch? No worries. Chances are you’ll find plenty of pre-made templates online—with all the function and flair you need, minus the work.