A new year is a perfect time to learn a new software! Excel spreadsheets are one of the most effective ways to organize raw data. With that said, if you’re new to using Microsoft Excel, you might struggle to use this software effectively. If you learn a few basic spreadsheet tricks, you’ll be able to adapt to Excel and get more from this software.
Select Entire Columns Or Rows
If you try to adjust data one box at a time, you’ll find yourself spending lots of time with your spreadsheets. Thankfully, Excel makes it easy for you to select entire columns or rows all at once. Simply select the first box in a sequence, then press CTRL + Shift. Once you’ve done that, you can use the arrow keys to select either the full column or the full row.
This is a simple shortcut that can save you tons of time. While you’ll need to edit one cell at a time on some occasions, in many situations, you’ll find that it’s easier to adjust an entire row at once.
Instantly Enter Data Patterns
Excel has a number of features that help it to stand out from other spreadsheet software. For example, it’s able to recognize data patterns. This allows you to enter large amounts of data at once, saving you a lot of time. You only need to add data into two cells in order to establish a pattern.
If you’d like to enter a data pattern in an instant, you’ll want to highlight the cells that represent that pattern. When you do this, you’ll see a green square form. Click on the square and drag it to fill other cells with data that falls within your pattern.
Copy Information Between Spreadsheets
In some cases, you may want to add the same data to multiple spreadsheets. You can do this by opening the worksheet with the data that you want to copy. Press CTRL and click on the worksheet tab that contains the data that you want to copy.
From there, you’ll want to navigate to the cell that contains the data that you need. Press F2 to activate the cell, and then press enter to re-enter the data on a new worksheet. You can select multiple cells if needed.
Properly Import Data
Copying information won’t be your best choice if you need to transfer more complex data from one spreadsheet to another. If you’re importing data, you should click on the Data tab and select “Get External Data.” From there, you’ll be presented with several options for importing your data. Select the best option and import your data over to a new spreadsheet. Properly importing your data can help to prevent a lot of issues.
If you’re coming to Microsoft Excel in 2020, you might feel like you have a lot to learn. Although you might not be able to master Excel overnight, you can easily learn a few tricks that will make Excel easier to work with. All of these suggestions are easy to implement and can enhance the experience you have with Excel. Check out some of our blog posts on great tips and tricks for using Excel.
