# How has Excel Helped You In Life?



## kstuffer (Jun 20, 2010)

I've been wanting to learn excel for quite some time now. Not just basic usage but up to the expertise level. I'm out of school for the summer and this is one of my goals. Here are a couple questions

1. How has knowing excel helped you in life? (career, daily life etc)
2. What are some resources that you would recommend for someone that knows the basics?

Thanks!


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## Smitty (Jun 20, 2010)

Welcome to the Board!

You'll find a lot of different uses for Excel, both personal and professional.  It's got a myriad of uses, from simple check registers to statistical analysis and more.  It's really up to what you want to do and how complex you want to get.  Get ready to be frustrated at times, because it's a hugely complex program, but simplistic at the same time.  Many users will never get past Excel as just digital graph paper, while some will go on to delve  into it fully.  That really depends on you.  The most important thing is to have an open mind, because generally if you can think it, Excel can do it.

I stumbled into Excel as a job requirement many years ago and it literally shaped my career to where I'm now primarily an Excel developer.

As for resources there are lots of books out there, Bill Jelen (aka Mr. Excel) has several, as does John Walkenbach (www.j-walk.com).  There are also a lot of tutorials that a Google/Bing search will turn up.

The Microsoft Template Gallery is a great resource and will (generally) give you good ideas about proper layout, design and functionality.

The best thing to do is just start working with it, and be open to asking questions - no matter how trivial or complicated they may seem to you, it's a good bet someone here can answer them.

HTH,


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## xld (Jun 20, 2010)

kstuffer said:


> I've been wanting to learn excel for quite some time now. Not just basic usage but up to the expertise level. I'm out of school for the summer and this is one of my goals. Here are a couple questions
> 
> 1. How has knowing excel helped you in life? (career, daily life etc)
> 2. What are some resources that you would recommend for someone that knows the basics?
> ...



Don't do it.

Excel has ruined my life, and the lives of all of the sad gits that you see here.


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## Domski (Jun 21, 2010)

xld said:


> Don't do it.
> 
> Excel has ruined my life, and the lives of all of the sad gits that you see here.



You don't mean that Bob. Oh no, actually you're right!!! Why didn't I just stick to photocopying and filing???

In answer to the OP's question though the main way it's helped me is I've got skills with a piece of software that is very widely used but I can use it better than anyone in my department and possibly in the entire workforce.

Dom


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## RoryA (Jun 21, 2010)

xld said:


> Excel has ruined my life, and the lives of all of the sad gits that you see here.



Not true - I used to use Access pretty much all day, so my life was already ruined.


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## scottylad2 (Jun 21, 2010)

It will increase your prospects with members of the opposite sex, most females  $absolutely$ adore guys who know there way around Excel


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## xld (Jun 21, 2010)

rorya said:


> Not true - I used to use Access pretty much all day, so my life was already ruined.



Then you have no exuse, you should have seen it coming.


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## RoryA (Jun 21, 2010)

xld said:


> you should have seen it coming.



that is the leitmotif of my life.


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## baitmaster (Jul 1, 2010)

There's very few people out there that can use Excel to anything like its full potential, so even learning a few simple VBA tricks can put you streets ahead of all of your colleagues in terms of efficiency, and before you know it everyone thinks you're a genius for getting your work done whilst sitting around drinking coffee

It's used in almost every industry, so it's a good transferable skill too, and competition is minimal in these days of fewer jobs...


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## xld (Jul 1, 2010)

baitmaster said:


> ... and before you know it everyone thinks you're a genius for getting your work done whilst sitting around drinking coffee



If only! I have always found that every time I learnt something it made we want to find out more, so it saved me nada.


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## baitmaster (Jul 1, 2010)

It's all about how you project yourself. The reward is those _carefully chosen moments _when you make sure everyone can see how much you are doing without lifting a finger - they don't have to know how many hours are spent researching how to do it even more smugly next time


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## Rekd (Jul 1, 2010)

Interesting topic. 


Here's how Excel has helped me in life...

I (finally) learned how to communicate with engineers
Even stupid people (like me) can appear smart
I'm really not lazy, I'm _efficient_ (HA!)
I can play in the debug window and people think I'm working
In less than 6 months at my new job I've become the go-to guy
I've always been ok using all the different flavors of Visual Basic. Never great, but good enough to do what I needed to do. That experience has helped me pick up the formula syntax/usage in Excel fairly easily and when I figured out vlookup I started moving ahead in leaps and bounds.

I've done some very simple things for this department that have proven to save countless hours and makes the buyer's jobs easier. 

The funny part is; I'm still a complete n00b at it when you compare me to people here! I can almost imagine where I'll be in a year from now, or two.


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## Richard Schollar (Jul 1, 2010)

Rekd said:


> I can play in the debug window and people think I'm working


 
So, so true


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## baitmaster (Jul 1, 2010)

Rekd said:


> I'm really not lazy, I'm _efficient_ (HA!)


 
yes. thats what I meant. erm... ..harrumph...


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## baitmaster (Jul 1, 2010)

Did I just see Richard in the lounge?! I've been lurking in here all day waiting for a chance to win a prize, and before I know it he's been and gone already... 

or is that the competition, see who sees him first? eh? nudge nudge..!


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## RoryA (Jul 1, 2010)

I fear the competition will not be occurring after all. The Powers That Be (MS, not here) frowned upon it.


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## baitmaster (Jul 1, 2010)

really? after all that this forum does to help promote, and help people with, their software?! one copy? booo!


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## Rekd (Jul 1, 2010)

baitmaster said:


> really? after all that this forum does to help promote, and help people with, their software?! one copy? booo!


 
I figured that was going to happen. It's not that it's just one copy, it's that the one copy they gave webby was not for promotional purposes. (It's a departmental thing with them.)

That's not to say, however, that MrExcel can't contact their media department and negotiate a competition/promotion with them... wink wink, nudge nudge. (I know a thing or three about media relations if you'd like me to look into it on behalf of MrExcel  )


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## RoryA (Jul 1, 2010)

Nowt to do with the forum per se - it was Richard's copy.
Not a bad idea though...


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## baitmaster (Jul 1, 2010)

On a (sort of) related note, how does one become a member of the beta-testing community, to see these things early on / provide feedback etc?


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## xld (Jul 1, 2010)

rorya said:


> I fear the competition will not be occurring after all. The Powers That Be (MS, not here) frowned upon it.



Where did you hear that Rory?


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## RoryA (Jul 1, 2010)

From Richard - that's what the MVP lead told him.


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## xld (Jul 1, 2010)

rorya said:


> From Richard - that's what the MVP lead told him.



Odd, I asked and haven't been told one way or another!


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## RoryA (Jul 1, 2010)

Typically, he only heard this morning, after posting the offer yesterday!
I'm not even sure who our lead is today...


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## Domski (Jul 1, 2010)

I must be missing something, or not, as the case may be.

Dom


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## SuperFerret (Jul 5, 2010)

baitmaster said:


> On a (sort of) related note, how does one become a member of the beta-testing community, to see these things early on / provide feedback etc?


 
I got asked to beta-test, after I did a course at a local training centre. They only had so many places so I didn't get to go though  gutted


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## RoryA (Jul 5, 2010)

baitmaster said:


> On a (sort of) related note, how does one become a member of the beta-testing community, to see these things early on / provide feedback etc?



Via Connect - see this MSKB article.


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## steve case (Jul 17, 2010)

kstuffer said:


> I've been wanting to learn excel for quite some time now. Not just basic usage but up to the expertise level. I'm out of school for the summer and this is one of my goals. Here are a couple questions
> 
> 1. How has knowing excel helped you in life? (career, daily life etc)
> 2. What are some resources that you would recommend for someone that knows the basics?
> ...


I have retired, and so I don't come here for help very much anymore.  

How has Excel helped me?  A better question is how has the Mr. Excel.com forum helped me.  I was the resident guru thanks to much of the help I got on this website.  I made all sorts of "Toys" for people who wanted Excel spreadsheets that would do all sorts of things.  Most of them had some special twist that required that I come here, to Mr. Excel and ask, "How do I do this?"  Sometimes I would get an answer in minutes!

When I got one of these "Toys" to run, it was a real rush,  "YES!" I would say and then I'd get to work putting the finishing touches on whatever it was I was building.  

Some of the projects seemed to have a life of their own.  I kept adding buttons and features to reference files, sort stuff, track equipment, etc. it was fun.  

What resources?  This one! Mr. Excel, is the best free site on the net. If you can't figure it out, someone here will show you how or tell you it can't be done.   As I found out, there are some things that can't be done, but for the most part, if you think Excel can do it, it can.


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## Sadiekhan (Jul 17, 2010)

I was stay at home mom, and now I make spreadsheets and do statistical analysis for students, whenever I am stuck I come here, experts here are very keen to help.
Thank you mr excel.


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## HalfAce (Jul 18, 2010)

How has Excel helped me?
It's what keeps me from having to do any _real_ work around here.


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## sirN (Jul 20, 2010)

I use Excel at work and have been able to improve upon quite a few of the various reports we do.  The youtube videos are cool 'cause they're free.  You could learn a lot just watching them, as long as you do something with the examples you learn.


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