Working Smarter with Microsoft Office
part 3

In last two articles, I gave some features that let you get more out of the applications you use every day. Here are still more ideas to be able to do more with less effort.

Enter first, format later.

Whether I am writing in Word, entering data in Excel, or creating a presentation in PowerPoint, I find it faster to just type in the information and not worry about how it looks. Once I have most of it entered, I can see what I have and how to best format it. This is especially true in Excel where it’s better to enter text from the keyboard and format with the mouse.

Another way I make formatting easier and faster is to use the toolbar as much as possible. Microsoft did a lot of research to find out what people use most and put those features in the toolbars. There are a few things I use (like Small Caps) that are not in the default formatting toolbar, so I’ve added them. (See the January 2006 article for information on customizing toolbars.)

Number, not number

Everything you enter into Excel will be either a number or not a number (as far as Excel is concerned and that’s all that really matters!). Since Excel can only calculate on numbers, it’s crucial that it recognizes the data you’re entering correctly.

The good news is there’s a simple way to know what Excel is assuming. By default, Excel formats numbers as right-aligned and not-numbers as left aligned. This is another reason it’s easier to enter first, format later.

By the way, dates are considered numbers because you can use them in calculations.

Finally, if you want something to be text and Excel keep seeing it as a number, you can force it to be text (or not number) by putting an apostrophe ( ’ ) at the beginning of the cell.

Only use Tab, Enter, or Escape to leave a cell once you’ve started entering data.

Speaking of entering data … by default, Excel is in Ready mode. However, when you start to enter data, it switches to Edit mode. The mode is indicated in the bottom left corner of the screen.

When in Edit mode, although you can use the mouse to click elsewhere, sometimes that will actually alter the contents of the cell (especially if you are entering formulas or functions). To reduce the chance of problems (especially when you’re in a hurry), keep your hands on the keyboard and off your mouse when you’re entering data. Use the Tab, Enter, or Escape key to leave the cell. Typically, the Tab key moves your cursor to the right and the Enter key moves the cursor down (and to the left if you had been entering across). If you want to leave the cell without keeping what you typed, use the Escape key.

Those are a few ways to work smarter, not harder. In next month’s article I’ll give a few more tricks to get more done in less time.