Blake Burge Profile picture
Dec 10, 2022 13 tweets 5 min read Read on X
The Top 10 must-have Excel skills everyone should know: 📊
#10 – Sparklines

One of my personal favorites.

Sparklines allow you to insert miniature graphs inside an individual cell to easily visualize data.

•Select range
•Insert ⇢ Sparkline
• Choose type
#9 – Camera Snapshot

Here's a little-known trick to move data between workbooks.

First, add "camera" to your quick access toolbar.

•Select data ⇢ click 📷
•Paste to a new workbook

What's cool?: When you update the main workbook, the data in the picture updates as well! 🤯
#8 – Tables

If you're not using tables in Excel, you should be.

• Clean formatting
• Auto-expand as new data is added
• Total row quick & easy data summaries
• Formulas carry through entire columns
• Create dynamic charts that update automatically & much more.

Here's how:
#7 – Slicer

Now that you're using tables, let's insert one of my favorite filtering tools.

The Slicer

•Click anywhere inside a table
•Go to table ⇢ insert slicer
•Select the fields you want

A dialog box will appear.

Click any slicer button & data is filtered accordingly.
#6 – Data Validation

If you've spent any time working in spreadsheets, you know one thing:

They're only as good as the data entered.

My favorite way to ensure consistency & accuracy is Drop Down lists.

It's easy & guarantees the data will be entered correctly––every time.
#5 – X-Lookup

If you're an old-school Excel user, there's no doubt you're familiar with V-Lookup.

X is the new & improved version, here's why:

•Lookup array does NOT have to be on the left side only.
•Allows you to return multiple values at the same time.

Here's how: 👇🏻
#4 – Consolidate

Take data from multiple tabs.

Consolidate into one.

Sum, average, count, it's your choice.

By creating links to the source data, your consolidation tab will update automatically.

The best part? No formulas required.
#3 – Automatic Abbreviations

If you're like me, autocorrect is more of an annoyance than a help.

Let's change that.

Set up your own custom list of abbreviations, and bend its powers to your will.

Type 'TBD'
Press 'Enter"
Output = 'To be determined'
#2 – Conditional Formatting

As you can tell, I'm a big fan of visualizing data.

Conditional formatting is one of the best & easiest ways to do this.

Let's face it, if your data looks good, you look good.

Spice it up by adding data bars, heat maps, or icon sets to show trends:
#1 – Flash Fill

Let's say you've got all the data you need––it just isn't in the right place.

"Flash Fill" is your friend.

Quickly extract pieces of text from one cell and move them to another OR combine text from multiple cells into a single place.
That's all for today!

I'd love to help you automate tasks, save time, & achieve your goals.

For less than $10 bucks you can:

→Get in shape
→Conquer debt
→Build better habits
→Organize your finances & more!

Excel & Google Sheets Templates Here:
blakeburge.gumroad.com 👇🏻
Christmas Special!

Want to learn the fundamentals of Excel in just 2 emails per week?

My email course is discounted for a limited time.

6 weeks, 2 emails per week. Learn more here:
blakeburge.com

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More from @blakeaburge

Jun 1, 2024
Steve Harvey often talks to the studio audience during commercial breaks when filming Family Feud.

According to him, there's one difference between successful people and those who aren't:
"What goes on in here." (Your own mind)

" The hard part is believing that it's applicable to you. You've just gotta get out your own way sometimes."

I think a lot about that first point.

It applies across so many areas of life.
Relationships, careers, health and fitness, you name it.

How many times do we decide something isn't "for us."

We rule ourselves out and say we're not smart enough, we don't know the right people, we don't have the resources.
Read 5 tweets
May 27, 2024
In 2011, Denzel Washington was asked to give a commencement speech at the University of Pennsylvania.

Although the entire message is quite good, a single 54-second segment changed the way I think about life...
In less than a minute, Washington hit these 3 points:

Point 1: If you don't fail, you're not even trying.

Point 2: To get something you've never had, you have to do something you've never done.

Point 3: Imagine the ghosts of your unfulfilled potential.
The third one really struck me.

It's from a larger quote by motivational speaker, Les Brown.

“Imagine you’re on your deathbed—and standing around your bed are the ghosts representing your unfilled potential...
Read 6 tweets
May 25, 2024
I'm convinced that there is one skill that separates truly intelligent people from those that aren't:

Listening.

This concept of "being a recorder" by Rick Rubin explains it perfectly.

In less than a minute, Rubin provides 4 simple steps that will change how you think about...
your interactions with others.

Step 1: "It starts with coming in blank. Not having any preconceived ideas, being open, and really listening.

Not thinking about what you're going to say next or what your opinion is."
Step 2: "Basically being a recorder.

Just hearing what comes in.

Processing that information and trying to do our best to do that without any of the beliefs we might have to impact what that is."
Read 9 tweets
Jun 24, 2023
2 months after Rocky I was released in 1976, Sylvester Stallone did an interview with the BBC.

But it wasn't the Italian Stallion throwing punches.

It was the host––who at one point said:

"It was fairly presumptuous of you wasn't it? To expect to be able to star in it, because… https://t.co/5tQrGh80iMtwitter.com/i/web/status/1…
You can watch the full interview here:

If you like content like this, I also write a weekly newsletter. It's free, and nearly 30K people read it every Sunday.
https://t.co/v49JfZ7r9p
blake.ck.page
This part where Stallone talks about how much money he was offered to "just go away" is pure gold.

A lot to be said for failing on your own terms:
Read 4 tweets
May 27, 2023
"The solution to your problem is not going to be found in the problem."

I've spoken with 3 different friends in the last week (all high-achievers) who've expressed to me some level of feeling overwhelmed.

They all use the same tactic to get back on track––

Detachment:
Everyone has the same issue.

We're so narrowly focused on our own problems, the immediate issues in front of us, the trees instead of the forest, that we can't find our way out.

We've narrowed our field of vision to the point we're unable to see what we need to do.
I've always been hesitant to speak up in meetings.

Fear of sounding dumb, or giving an incorrect answer has held me back.

Jocko provides a great illustration here:

Sometimes, a perspective from the outside (even from someone less experienced) is exactly what is needed.
Read 8 tweets
May 10, 2023
Humans have a tendency to believe false information.

It's called the "Illusory Truth Effect"

Here's why it happens and how you can train your brain to overcome it: Image
First, some background...

In 1977, researchers from Villanova and Temple were the first to coin the term during a study conducted over a 5-week period.

Separated into 3 sessions, participants were given a list of 60 statements.

Their task was simple.
Determine what was true & what was false.

In each session, 40 statements were unique, while the remaining 20 were repeated from the previous rounds.

Over the course of the three meetings, researchers noticed an interesting trend...
Read 16 tweets

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