Excel University Sparkline
A newsletter designed to help you learn Excel and work faster
Excel University Newsletter Vol 2 Issue 2 © excel-university.com - all rights reserved
Message from Jeff
Excel helps you automate manual tasks. There are many things inside of Excel that we can use to automate tasks, including formulas, features, Power Query, Power Pivot, and Macros / VBA.
Macros (a set of instructions) written in VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) are a very powerful tool in Excel.
Think of VBA as a language that enables you to talk directly to Excel, bypassing all of the user interface and need for using your mouse or keyboard. A macro runs a set of specific VBA instructions that does things in Excel very quickly.
This capability is a powerful way to automate repetitive tasks. VBA will take a while to learn as it is a very comprehensive tool, but generally, the time invested will pay efficiency dividends for many years.
Excel Topic of the Week
If you haven't explored macros before, I have a little tutorial that can help you get started. It is designed to automate the task of inserting new worksheets into a workbook based on names in a range of cells.
You select the range of cells with the worksheet names and then run the macro. The macro will execute VBA instructions that tell Excel to create and name new worksheets accordingly.
>>> If you'd like to check it out, view the Insert and Name Sheets from Cell Values article.
Student Success
William recently completed the Excel University VBA lessons in Masters 2.
He said he appreciated that the lessons started with the basics and then progressively built up the VBA knowledge.
"I now feel a lot more comfortable using VBA" and he is looking forward to using his knowledge to improve his workbooks. Way to go William!
Weekly Challenge
This breakout puzzle has a sports theme and there are 3 steps. In step 1, you want to find the 4-digit numeric key that I’ve hidden.
You’ll have to use your Excel knowledge to find the key. Once you do, enter the key into the Step 2 sheet to reveal the 8-digit code.
To verify that the code is correct, head to Step 3 and enter the code. If it is correct, you’ll be able to use the resulting link to view a fun congratulations page.
If you think you are up for it, download the file below ... and good luck!
The video below is a walkthrough of how to complete the breakout puzzle.
Excel Shortcut
Open Macro dialog box:
- Windows: Alt F8
- Mac: Fn ⌥ F8
Closing Thought
Excel has many ways to help you automate manual tasks. I love figuring out how to get Excel to do my work (so I don't have to). In my previous role, being the person who knew how to automate everything dramatically increased my job security. This quote captures it well:
"You're either the one that creates the automation or you're getting automated."
-Tom Preston-Werner
In addition to better job security, my ability to streamline processes and make them more efficient also provided me with better pay and better opportunities. I hope that knowing how to automate manual tasks with Excel will provide the same benefits for you!
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