Excel Productivity Guide1

7/27/2019 Excel Productivity Guide1

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Introduction 3

How To Become 10X More Focused When Working With Excel... 4

VBA & Formula Creativity On Demand.. 6

What Nerds Can Teach You About Mastering Excel Formulas 9

How To Master Word & Excel Keyboard Shortcuts in 30 Days.. 15

Excel Marathon Training Excel Shortcuts................................................................ 18


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Interruptions are the tools of the devil!Interruptions are the tools of the devil!Interruptions are the tools of the devil!Interruptions are the tools of the devil! And our lives are full of them Emails, phone

calls, online messaging, spouses and kids.

My kids, for example, are fiends (God bless their souls). They have a hellish capacity to

interrupt their mom while shes trying to focus.

But why are interruptions so disruptive?

This is a very important question, and there are two answers:

SwappingSwappingSwappingSwapping

Because we can only focus on one thing at a time, we need to clear our mental processingchip before we can focus on a new task.

This means that when we are disrupted, we push all the information that relates to the

current task into the back of our minds and fill our active memory with information thats

relevant to the interruption.

For instance, if my youngest wants me to read him a story while Im working, Ill store the

work-related information in the back of my mind and read him the story. Only when he

goes away, I can retrieve the work related information and go back to work.

The process of retrieving the work-related information and getting back into flow is both

time consuming and tiring.

This is one of the reasons that after several interruptions, we become so tired we are unableto re-focus on our work.

ReprioritizationReprioritizationReprioritizationReprioritization

At any given time there are dozens of tasks we can be doing. There are bills to pay, house

chores to complete and about 20 different things we need to do at work.

Every time we stop working on a task, all these unfinished tasks compete for our attention.

This is not an optional process. We always mentally re-evaluate our to-do list before

choosing to perform a certain task.

So every time we are interrupted, we enter this re-evaluation phase. And apart from the fact

that the re-evaluation process is a time waster by itself, we often choose to do something

different.


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For instance, how many times did you work on a task, get interrupted, and then when you

finished handling the interruption, you decided to check your Email? And before you knew

it an hour has passed.

Blocking interruptions with the Insurance Agent techniqueBlocking interruptions with the Insurance Agent techniqueBlocking interruptions with the Insurance Agent techniqueBlocking interruptions with the Insurance Agent technique

My insurance agent is a pretty nice guy (for an insurance agent).

Every once in a while he schedules a meeting with me to make sure that I am happy (and

that I intend to keep paying him on a monthly basis).

These meetings are not very important to me, but since I kinda like the guy, I treat him with

respect.

I will

1. Close my cell phone and ask the secretary not to transfer calls unless they are a matter oflife and death.

2. I close the office door so that we wont get interrupted during the meeting.3. I close my instant messenger and dont check Emails throughout the meeting.So how does that relate to being more focused?So how does that relate to being more focused?So how does that relate to being more focused?So how does that relate to being more focused?

Well, at one point I figured that regular work is just as important as my meetings with the

insurance agent and I started doing the following two things:

1. I blocked out work meetings with myself in the diary. These are work meetings thatare as important as meetings with other people and there needs to be a very goodreason for me to cancel them.

2. During those meetings, I treat my work with the same respect as I would a meetingwith Dave the insurance guy. I dont take calls; I dont check Emails, etc.

This practice has allowed me to stay focused and uninterrupted for chunks of time. And I

find that I get at least twice as more done during those work meetings than in regular work

mode.

If you try this technique, I guarantee youll love it.


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This article is probably the most interesting and exciting article in the Excel Productivity

Squared series.

This is because, in just a minute, I will reveal how VBA geniuses come up with brilliant

solutions to programming problems.

And I am not talking about small insights either; I am talking about coming up with ideas

that will make your co-workers/boss/clients gasp in wonder.

So without further ado, here is a first glimpse into the mind of the programming genius.

So, Do I need to memorizing 500 formulas?So, Do I need to memorizing 500 formulas?So, Do I need to memorizing 500 formulas?So, Do I need to memorizing 500 formulas?

WellNo!

You dont need to memorize formulas or VBA syntax to be able to come up with creative

ideas. You do, however, need to understand and use the creative thinking process that

these VBA geniuses employ.

Now, its important to understand that 99% of these geniuses use intuition. Thus, they

cannot fully describe the steps they take to come up with a new idea.

Once they learn of a problem they tend to obsessively think about it, toss it and turn it in

their heads, until finally a solution comes to them (usually, in the shower).

But today, we are going to lift the veil and give you an inside look into the minds of those

geniuses. We are going to show you a

Simple and easy system to create brilliant VBA/Formulas solutionsSimple and easy system to create brilliant VBA/Formulas solutionsSimple and easy system to create brilliant VBA/Formulas solutionsSimple and easy system to create brilliant VBA/Formulas solutions

Its the same system weve been using here at Cogniview to consistently create productivity-

boosting solutions for our customers.

This system almost always works and, in most cases, it has a considerable impact on the

productivity of our clients.

Are you ready? Lets go

Creativity is a fresh pair of eyes (Woodrow Wilson)Creativity is a fresh pair of eyes (Woodrow Wilson)Creativity is a fresh pair of eyes (Woodrow Wilson)Creativity is a fresh pair of eyes (Woodrow Wilson)

In order to come up with a new idea, you need to look at the problem (or the work process)

in a different way.

Or, in other words to reframe the problem.


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By systematically reframing problems, we can easily come up solutions.

By systematically reframing processes, we can easily find ways to improve them.

And so, to come up with a brilliant new solution, all you have to do is apply a set of

reframing techniques to a problem or a process until the brilliant idea comes to you.

So lets go to the first (and one of the most powerful) reframing techniques

The 80The 80The 80The 80/20 Creativity Turbo/20 Creativity Turbo/20 Creativity Turbo/20 Creativity Turbo----EngineEngineEngineEngine

You know the 80/20 rule (the Pareto principle).

80% of the wealth is owned by 20% of the population

80% of the sales come from 20% of the clients

And so on

Well, The Pareto principle is my favorite reframing technique. It means that you use

VBA/Formulas to automate just 20% of the work and get a huge productivity increase

(sometimes even more than 80%).

So, whenever we work with a client we ask ourselves

Can we use VBA/Formulas to automate just a small part of the process, but in such a way

that will significantly increase the clients overall productivity?

Heres an example

How we cut this retailers workHow we cut this retailers workHow we cut this retailers workHow we cut this retailers work----time in halftime in halftime in halftime in half

One of our clients (lets call him Ted) owns a hardware retail business. When we first started

working with him, he was pulling 12-hour days, 7 days a week.

Most of Teds work centers on preparing price quotes for existing or new customers. Each

RFP (request for proposal) Ted receives usually includes several items.

When preparing a quote, Ted used to search his vendor catalogs for each of the items and

then select the item from the vendor that offered the lowest price for it.

Searching for the lowest-priced item across his entire collection of vendor catalogs took

most of Teds day, but since Ted is working in a very price-competitive niche, he had no

other choice.

Ted asked us if we could help him convert all his vendor catalogs into a database where he

would just enter the item ID and get the lowest priced vendor item.

But that was too much work.


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Ted works with over 40 vendors. Each of those vendors manufactures thousands of items.

And to top it all, every once in a while the vendors issue new catalogs and update their

prices.

A database that could completely solve Teds problem would contain more than 100,000

items and Ted would have to hire a full-time employee whose only job would be to keep

the database updated.

But here is where the 80/20 rule comes to the rescueBut here is where the 80/20 rule comes to the rescueBut here is where the 80/20 rule comes to the rescueBut here is where the 80/20 rule comes to the rescue

After we discussed the problem with Ted, we discovered that 50% of the items ordered

were the same 100 items.

So we created a database just for those 100 items.

And while this was a partial solution, a solution that solved less than 1% of the problem, it

was responsible for reducing Teds workload by halfby halfby halfby half.

Bear in mind that this database didntdidntdidntdidnt solve the entire problemsolve the entire problemsolve the entire problemsolve the entire problem.

Ted still had to look up item prices almost every time he received an RFP, but it did save

him more than 50% of the time he used to spend on the quote creation process.

Needless to say that Ted was overjoyed.

To sum upTo sum upTo sum upTo sum up

Whenever you are faced with an Excel problem that seems unsolvable or with a process that

defies automation try to reframe the problem by asking yourself

Can I write a VBA Macro or come up with a formula that will automate a small part of the

work but in a way that will create a big productivity increase?

Its not a fancy technique, but it has worked wonders for us, and if you use it, it will do the

same for you.


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When I was younger, just a bad little kid my mama noticed funny things I did- Orin the

Dentist, Little Shop of Horrors.

When I was young and just a nerdy little kid, I was really good at solving mathematical

equations. So good, that my friends parents took notice and hired me to tutor their kids (my

friends).

And because they offered a pile of money, I more than happily accepted the challenge.

It was then that I noticed a funny thing. I was the best equation solver in class! No kidding

A+ in every test.

And yet, when I solved an equation I did it one small step at a time.

So if you take this equation for instance:

2(x+1)+3 = 7

I would expand the equation (get rid of the parenthesis):

2x+2+3=7

Add the 2 and 3 (on the left side of the equation):

2x+5=7

Subtract 5 from both sides of the equation:

2x=7-5

Make the subtraction on the right side (please keep reading, theres a point to this - I

promise):

2x=2

And finally divide both sides of the equation by 2 to arrive to the result:

x=1

But for my friends, this was too boring. They couldnt be bothered with the simple steps.

They would go from:

2(x+1)+3=7

To:

X=1


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In one step!!!!!

And more often than not, they would go from:

2(x+1)+3=7

To:

x=2

This would earn them an F on the exam. This, in turn, provided me with a generous and

continuous income stream.

You see, all my friends knew how to solve math equations. But because they were in a

hurry to solve the equation, they skipped a lot of steps, and since difficult solving equation

when skipping steps, they made mistakes.

What does that have to do with Excel Formulas?What does that have to do with Excel Formulas?What does that have to do with Excel Formulas?What does that have to do with Excel Formulas?

Plenty.

Whenever we create a compound formula (a formula that uses more than one function), we

are actually solving more than one problem. And if we rush things and try to write the entire

formula in one go, theres a good chance well make a mistake or two.

Heres where another reframing technique comes into play Breaking down the problem.

Breaking down the problem allows us to solve every part of the problem separately and then

join the small solutions into one big solution (or in our case one big formula)

Is that clear?

No?

Fair enough, lets check out this example

Breaking Down the ProblemBreaking Down the ProblemBreaking Down the ProblemBreaking Down the Problem ---- ExampleExampleExampleExample

Lets say I have a list of unpaid invoices. Along with each invoice I have date on which it

was issued - as shown below


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I am required to write a formula that will show (for each invoice) the amount of days left

until it needs to be paid (assuming that invoices are supposed to be paid within 90 days)

and if more than 90 days have passed then I should mark the invoice as Late Payment

So, instead of charging ahead and immediately writing the formula in Excel, lets break

down the problem first.

We need to:

1. Calculate how many days have passed since each invoice was issued2. Calculate how many days until payment, which is: 90-[days passed since issued]3. If 90 days or less passed from the issue date then display [days until payment]

otherwise display Late payment.

Ok, that wasnt so hard; now lets enter this into Excel.


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First, an equation to calculate how many days passed since invoice was issued:

Note: The Edate() function turns a date-value into a number which is the number of days

since 1/1/1900. And so I use the Edate() function to convert both the current date (today())

and the date on which the invoice was issued into a [days since 1/1/1900] representation.

And then all I have to do is subtract the two resulting numbers to get the number of days

that have passed since the invoice was issued.

Now, lets calculate how many days till payment (in another column):


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Then use the if function to display the required result:

Note: I use the if() function to check if less than 90 days have passed since the invoice was

issued. If less than 90 days passed, the if() function returns the days left until payment (Cell

E2). If more than 90 days have passed, the if() function returns the value Late Payment.

Finally, lets combine all the separate formulas into one formula:

SummarySummarySummarySummary

When faced with a situation that requires a compound formula, you should start by

breaking down the problem into the smallest possible parts, then solve each part separately

and only when all the parts are working, combine the little formulas into one.


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The truth is theres a simple technique that makes memorizing keyboard shortcuts very easy.

In fact, this technique is so effective that within 30 days youll be using the keyboard to

perform dozens of functions without as much as glancing at the Ribbon (toolbars and menus

for you old timers).

But there is one obstacle you need to overcome in order to use this technique - the same

obstacle we face every time we try to acquire a new skill, whether it is learning a new set of

shortcuts, how to touch-type or how to create more compelling graphs.

The problem with learning new skillsThe problem with learning new skillsThe problem with learning new skillsThe problem with learning new skillsYou see, no matter what new skill you try to learn, in the beginning, when you try to use

this new skill, itititit will slow you downwill slow you downwill slow you downwill slow you down.

And thats where most of us break. We learn something new, something thats supposed to

help us do a better/faster job. We try to use it, and we actually do worse than before. We

become slower and make more mistakes.

At that point we start blaming ourselves or the circumstances,

This thing doesnt work for me

I dont have enough time to learn this properly

Or my personal favorite I am not smart enough to learn this

This phenomenon is called the dip (this term was coined by Mr. Seth Godin).

It is a sad fact that most of us stop trying when we enter the dip. Instead we search for a

new skill to learn only to get stuck in a yet bigger dip.

How to Get Over the Dip and Learn Those ShortcutsHow to Get Over the Dip and Learn Those ShortcutsHow to Get Over the Dip and Learn Those ShortcutsHow to Get Over the Dip and Learn Those Shortcuts

To cross the dip you need to think of it as a close personal friend.

You must embrace the challenge and welcome the temporarytemporarytemporarytemporary setback that tags along. This

setback is a prerequisite to learning. And by welcoming it we change the tune of our

internal dialog.

And so, Instead of quitting, youll be saying to yourself

Hmm this is difficult


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If this is difficult, it means th

Not only that, it means that i

Well, I am going to cross thi

getting across.

And when I get through this,

And to top that, most people

More competitive advantage

Note:Note:Note:Note: There are excellent wa

discuss in future articles), but

overcoming it.

Back to Memorizing KeBack to Memorizing KeBack to Memorizing KeBack to Memorizing Ke

So now that we know how to

memorization technique

And as promised, it is very si

Whenever you need to evoke

use the character keys to navi

function you need.

This will initially slow you do

the functions you normally us

t Im learning

ts difficult for everyone.

dip. It might take me a week or even a

I am going to be far more skilled than I a

will quit here. Which means

for me. Yay!

s to make the crossing of the dip easier (

simply understanding the dip dynamics is

board Shortcutsboard Shortcutsboard Shortcutsboard Shortcuts

face the dips in our lives, lets focus on th

ple.

a function, instead of using the mouse, p

gate your way through the menus until yo

wn, but after a while, youll memorize th

e.

onth, but I am

now

hich we will

the key to

e shortcut

ess the ALT key and

u finally reach the

sequence of each of


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Later, youll get to a point where you wont even consciously think about what you want to

do. Your fingers will automatically activate the functions you need.

Granted, there are functions (both in Excel and Word) that cannot be triggered with a menu

command. Well discuss the shortcuts for these functions in the next article.

For now, just start using the alt key and remember

The dip is your best friend!


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A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher(604 BC - 531 BC)

In the previous article we showed that when you try to use a skill youve just learned, it will

slow you down for a little bit.

We also showed why that slowing down effect causes most people to stop using that skill

before it kicks in and actually improves productivity (i.e. the DIP Phenomena).

As promised, this article will show you a fantastic (and somewhat Chinese) way to

overcome the Dip.

The quick and easy way to learn new skills and overcome DipsThe quick and easy way to learn new skills and overcome DipsThe quick and easy way to learn new skills and overcome DipsThe quick and easy way to learn new skills and overcome Dips

So really - why is learning a new skill so tough? What makes crossing the Dip so hard?

Imagine this: youve decided to use shortcuts. Youve started the day with a tank full of

willpower and a firm resolution to cross the shortcuts dip.

Every time your hand starts inching towards the mouse, you force it back and make yourself

use the ALT key to navigate through a labyrinth of menus until you finally find the coveted

command. Youll have none of those pointing-and-clicking shenanigans today!

By the end of the first hour you are exhausted. It took a lot of willpower just to prevent your

hand from automatically grabbing the mouse.

By lunchtime, you are at the end of your rope. This whole shortcuts thing is sapping away

all your concentration and you havent been able to focus on work.

On top of that, youve actually used the mouse a couple of times because you just had to

get something done.

At this point you are experiencing FAILURE.

And that feeling of failure is exactly the thing that makes crossing the DIP so hard.

You see, failure is one of the emotions we human beings dread the most.

We hate the feeling of failure so much that after a few days of constant failure even the

toughest men do whatever they can avoid it (i.e. they QUIT).

But is there a way to overcome the feeling of failure?

Of course there is just turn it on its head!


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How to turn the feeling of failure into a feeling of successHow to turn the feeling of failure into a feeling of successHow to turn the feeling of failure into a feeling of successHow to turn the feeling of failure into a feeling of success

If I were to try running a marathon right now, I would experience a very real feeling of

failure.

Every sane person would start training long before they attempt to run a marathon.

But surprisingly enough, when we learn a new skill, we do the equivalent of running amarathon without training: we start using it immediately and throughout the entire day. And

naturally we experience failure.

So, how can we turn the feeling of failure to a feeling of success?

Thats right, by training.

Instead of using shortcuts all day long, set aside half an hour in the morning for shortcut

practice.

During this training session, do your regular work and focus on not using the mouse at all.

Place the mouse in a hard to reach location. This way youll be able to stop yourself before

actually using it.

Make sure you practice using shortcuts for only 30 minutes each day. This way, youll be

experiencing a feeling of success every time you finish a training session. Plus, you wont

have enough time to become exhausted.

This feeling will encourage you to continue practicing and in a few short days the shortcuts

will sneak out of your training sessions into your regular work.

Wont itWont itWont itWont it take a very long time to memorize shortcuts this way?take a very long time to memorize shortcuts this way?take a very long time to memorize shortcuts this way?take a very long time to memorize shortcuts this way?

In my experience, no. It might take two or three weeks, but your chances of succeeding are

dramatically higher.

So, instead of making a gargantuan effort and failing, use a series of short practice sessions.

This way, the learning process will be enjoyable and youd be motivated to stick with it.

NoneNoneNoneNone----ALT Key shortcutsALT Key shortcutsALT Key shortcutsALT Key shortcuts

We talked about the ALT Shortcuts in the previous article. But there are many functions that

cant be activated by navigating through the menus (for instance, selecting all the data in the

worksheet CTRL+*).

To memorize this type of shortcuts, do the following:

1. Every time your hand reaches for the mouse stop!2. Go to your favorite shortcuts list and search for the appropriate keyboard shortcut (if you

dont have a shortcut list, use Google to find one)


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3. Add the shortcut key (both the key combination and performed function) to a file calledMy Excel Shortcuts.xls and place it on the desktop

4. Next time you look for a shortcut key, check My Excel Shortcuts.xls firstThe reason for maintaining this file is that we usually use the same 10-20 functions all the

time. And maintaining a frequently-used shortcuts list greatly reduces the time it takes us to

find a shortcut key.

What to do nextWhat to do nextWhat to do nextWhat to do next

Now you have all the tools you need to master shortcuts:

a) Remember that the Dip is temporaryb) Create a low-effort training program for yourself (a maximum of 30 minutes each day)c) Use the ALT key to navigate to Ribbon functionsd) Maintain a frequently used shortcuts listAnd thats it.

But dont stop there. Your new understanding of the Dip and the low-effort training program

can help you learn dozens of new skills.

If you truly utilize these two principles, you can learn a new skill every month! Just imagine

how that will affect your productivity.

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Excel Productivity Guide1