Excel Essentials

Course Notes
Leila Gharani (Microsoft Excel MVP)

XelPlus.com

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©Note: Copyright 2019, XelPlus.com, Leila Gharani, MA
Information
Course Notes for Excel Essentials Course
These course notes are accompanying documentation for my online course
Excel Essentials for the Real World. Please do not reproduce or transmit in
any form without permission.
We (XelPlus e.U.) have taken every effort to ensure the accuracy of this
manual. In case you discover any discrepancies, please send us a quick email
to: [email protected].

How to Use the Notes

Use these course notes alongside the online course to review and
revise each section of the course.
You can also print it out. Keep it handy and refer to it anytime the need
comes.

About Leila Gharani

Leila Gharani is a Microsoft Excel MVP & a bestselling online course
instructor. She runs XelPlus.com an Excel resource site to help people gain
the knowledge they need so they can create useful tools, solve problems and
get more done. She has a YouTube channel under her name with more than
200k subscribers.
Her background is: Masters in Economics, Economist, Consultant, Oracle
HFM Accounting Systems Expert & Project Manager. Find out more here.

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Course Road Map

START Quick Tour Data Input & Hidden

of Excel Features to Save Time

Important Excel Excel Worksheet Navigation &

Functions Formulas Copying and Protecting

Data Cleaning & Formatting incl. Conditional

Management & Number Formatting

Working with Workbook Design Printing Files &

Charts Principles Saving as PDF

Quick Insights with Introduction to

Pivot Tables Power Query FINISH

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Table of Contents

Getting Started ------- 5

Data Input Shortcuts & Tips ------- 7

Shortcuts for Navigation ------- 9

Protecting Files & Sheets ------- 10

Essential Formula Rules ------- 11

Excel Functions ------- 14

Data Cleaning & Management Tools ------- 18

Useful Formatting Tools ------- 19

Printing Checklist ------- 20

Spreadsheet Design Principles ------- 21

Save Time Formatting Reports ------- 22

Chart Productivity Tips ------- 23

Pivot Table Tips ------- 24

Introduction to Power Query ------- 26

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Excel Vocabulary
Excel Terminology You’ll Need:
Workbook: An Excel file which includes one or more worksheets (tabs)
Worksheet: A single page inside a workbook which consists of cells
Cell: The intersection of a column & a row is a cell
Cell Address: Each cell has an address (e.g. C3, column= C, row=3)
Formula Bar: Shows the formula written in the selected cell or the cell value
(if no formula is written)
Name Box: Shows the address of the selected cell

Type a cell address in the name

box to quickly jump to the cell

Range: A group of cells

Range Address: Starts from the top left-hand corner to “:” bottom right-
hand corner (e.g. C3:D6)

Mouse Icons

Selection Handle
Click to select one cell, drag selection to select a range

Move Handle
Click and drag to move a cell or range

Fill Handle
Drag to fill the cell value to the other cells

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 Quick Tour of Excel

Most Common Features For Every Tab

File: Also called Backstage View – Save, Open, Pin documents & Print
Home: Formatting options as well as most common Excel features
Insert: Insert Charts, Tables, PivotTables (Sections 11 & 12)
Page Layout: Prepare for Printing (Sections 9 & 10)
Formulas: Overview of Excel Functions (Section 6)
Data: Get & Transform Data (Section 13)
Review: Spell check, Protect worksheet (Section 4)
View: Remove Gridlines
Developer: For Advanced Excel users who use VBA
Help: Get Help, provide feedback & suggest new features

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Data Input Shortcuts
Shortcut Key Action
[Enter] Move one cell down
[Ctrl] [Enter] Stay on the same cell
[Ctrl] C Copy cell / value
[Ctrl] V Paste cell / value
[F2] Edit cell content (same as double clicking
on a cell)
[Esc] Reset cell value (while in edit mode)
[Tab] Move to the cell on the right
[ALT] [Enter] Add a line break inside the formula bar
[Ctrl] Z Undo action
[Ctrl] Y Redo action
[ALT] = Auto sum
Select [F2] [Ctrl] Copy formula down without formatting
[Enter]

[Ctrl] ; Time Stamp current date

[Ctrl] [Shift] ; Time Stamp current time
[Ctrl] # Change date formatting to D-MMM-YY
[Ctrl] E FlashFill
[Ctrl] N Open Blank Workbook
[Ctrl] G Go to Special
[Shift] [F2] Insert a note

Double-click Format Painter

to use it multiple times

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Input Faster & Validate Data
Auto Fill For Index numbers, Weekdays, Months & more
If you’d like to get a list of months, type in the first month and drag the
selection down. Check the auto fill options for more choices.

Flash Fill to Modify & Speed up Data Entry

Use Flash Fill to get a list of email address, split names to two columns or
combine names from two columns into one. Just start typing or use the
shortcut key Ctrl + E or go to Home / Fill / Flash Fill.

Go to Special to Find Special Cells

Use the shortcut key Ctrl + G then Alt + S to bring up Go to Special.
Alternatively go to Home / Find & Select. Use this feature to quickly find
formula cells, constants, comments and data validation.

Data Validation

Use Input Message

as a screen tip tool.

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 More Excel Shortcuts
Shortcut Key Action
[Ctrl] [Page ▼] Move to the next worksheet
[Ctrl] [Page ▲] Move to the previous worksheet
[Ctrl] [Tab] Switch between Excel Workbooks

[Ctrl] [▼] Move to the bottom of the data region

Other arrow keys - move to the edge of the data
region
[Ctrl] [Shift] [▼] Move to the bottom of the data region and
highlight the range in between
Other arrow key to move & highlight in different
direction
[Ctrl] A Select data in current region
[Home] Move to the first cell in the same row
[Ctrl] [Home] Move to cell A1
[Ctrl] [End] Move to the last used cell on the worksheet
[Ctrl] [Backspace] Show active cell
[Ctrl] O Open a workbook (Open menu)
[Ctrl] S Save a workbook
[Ctrl] W Close a workbook
[Shift] [F11] Insert a new worksheet
[Ctrl] [+] Insert a new cell/row/column
[Ctrl] [-] Delete a cell/row/column
[Shift] [Space] Select the row
[Ctrl] [Space] Select the column
[Ctrl] B Bold
[Ctrl] 1 Format cells dialog box
[F4] Repeat last edit

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Protect Your File & Sheets
Protect File with a Password
To protect your workbook with a password, go to
Save As and from the Tools options, select General
Options. Type in your password.

Protect the Structure of Your File

Protect the structure of your file from Review / Protect
Workbook. This ensures the sheets are not moved,
deleted or added.

Protect the Sheet

Protect the sheet to ensure users cannot change formulas
or input in cells they shouldn’t be inputting.
To lock some areas but leave others open, go to Format
Cells (Ctrl + 1) / Protection & remove the checkmark for
locked.

What happens after you protect the sheet from the

review tab:
The cells which didn’t have a checkmark will remain open.
All other cells will be locked.

To be able to edit ranges with different

passwords use Allow Edit Ranges from the
Review Tab.
Select a range and provide a different
password for it.
Once done, protect the sheet.
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Order of Calculations in Excel

1 Parenthesis ( ) & Reference Operators

Values in brackets and cell reference operators such as : and ,
=SUM(A2:A4,B2:B4)

2 Negation -
For example -1*2 = -2

3 Percentage %
For example -1*2% = -1*0.02 = -0.02

4 Exponentiation ^
For example =2^2*2 = 8

5 Multiplication * & Division /

If both are present in the formula, Excel evaluates from left to right.

6 Addition + & Subtraction

If both are present in the formula, Excel evaluates from left to right.
For example 2+1*(3+1) = 2+1*4 = 2+4 = 6
MBA = Multiplication Before Addition

7 Ampersand &
For example 1+2+3&3 = 63

8 Comparison = < > <= >= <>

For example 1+2=1+2 = True

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Excel’s Essential Formula Rules

1 No Constants Inside Formulas

…Keep constants in separate cells with proper labeling so they can easily
by adjusted if needed.
Exceptions are universal constants such as 24 hours in a day, 7 days a
week, 12 months a year etc.

2 Formulas in a range should be consistent

Don’t adjust formulas in the middle of a range or remove them entirely if
they result in an error.

Update the first formula in the range to handle different scenarios (IF
Function – covered in the next section) & include error handling (IFERROR
or IF Function in case the result might be an error).

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Excel’s Essential Referencing Rules

1 Absolute, Relative or Mixed Referencing

Use F4 to toggle the cell reference between the different types.
= $A$1 → Reference to A1 will remain fixed.
= A$1 → Row 1 will remain fixed, but column will change.
= $A1 → Column A will remain fixed, but row will change.
= A1 → Both column and row will change.

Mixed Referencing Example

2 Connect Cell References

Use & to connect one cell reference with another.
For example: =A1&B1

3 Properly Use Text In Formulas

Use quotation marks to insert text in formulas. E.g. =“Hello”
If you combine a cell reference with text you need to use ampersand.
For example: =A1&" - "&B1

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Important! Working with Functions
What is a Function?
An Excel function is an in-built formula that runs specific calculations.
For the Excel function to work, you need to provide it with values in the
order it understands. This means following the right syntax.

Sum Function Example

The SUM function is programmed to add values from cells & ranges.
The suggestions you see inside the
brackets when you type in a function
is to help you understand what the
function needs so it can process
correctly.
These are called arguments and they
are separated by either the comma (,)
or the semi-colon (;).
Which one applies to you depends on
your regional windows setting.

Excel Automatically Translates Functions & Regional Settings

Assume you have an English version of Excel. Your Excel argument separator
is a comma. You create a spreadsheet with many formulas.
You then send this to your colleague located in Germany. When they open
the file, they will see the German version of the formulas and the argument
separator is automatically adjusted to a semi-colon.
In English the formula looks like this:
= SUM(A1:A2,B1:B2)
In German it will look like this:
=SUMME(A1:A2;B1:B2)

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Working with Date & Time
Inputting Dates Correctly
How dates are input depends on your locale / regional settings.
• In US dates are input as MM/DD/YYYY
• In Europe they are generally input as DD/MM/YYYY
To ensure the date was input correctly look at the number formatting. If
you see “Date” as format, Excel has correctly recognized the input.

How Excel Remembers Dates

In Excel, dates are stored as a serial number starting from January 1st, 1900.
Jan 1, 1900 = 1
Jan 2, 1900 = 2
Feb 25, 2019 = 43521

The fact that Excel stores dates as numbers helps us make

calculations on dates – for example:
2/25/2019 + 10 = 3/7/2019

How Excel Processes Time

Time is input as hour : minute : second followed by space then AM or PM.
You can also input time as a 24-hour clock.
7:00 PM or 19:00
In Excel, time is stored as a serial number which represents the proportion of
24 hours. For example:
• 12:00 AM = 24:00 = 24/24 =1
• 6:00 PM = 18:00 = 18/24 = 0.75

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 Important Excel Functions
Here is a list of some of the most used functions in Excel.

Function Description

COUNT Counts the number of cells that contain numbers

COUNTA Counts the number of cells that are not empty
COUNTBLANK Counts the number of empty cells in a range of cells
This function applies criteria to cells across multiple ranges
COUNTIFS
and counts the number of times all criteria are met.
SUM Adds individual values, cell references or ranges or a mix of
all three.
AVERAGE Returns the average (arithmetic mean) of the arguments.
SUMIFS Adds all its arguments that meet multiple criteria.
AVERAGEIFS Returns the average (arithmetic mean) of all cells that
meet multiple criteria.
MIN Returns the smallest number in a set of values.
MAX Returns the largest value in a set of values.
MINIFS Returns the minimum value among cells specified by a
given set of conditions or criteria.
MAXIFS Returns the maximum value among cells specified by a
given set of conditions or criteria.
ROUND Rounds a number to a specified number of digits.
ROUNDUP Rounds a number up, away from zero.
ROUNDDOWN Rounds a number down, toward zero.
Allows you to make logical comparisons between a value
and what you expect. It can have two results. The first
IF
result is if your comparison is True, the second if your
comparison is False.
Looks up a specified value in one column of data and
VLOOKUP
returns the corresponding value from another column.

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 Formula Errors
If your formula results in an error and you’re not sure why, the list below
might help.

Error Description

#DIV/0! This is probably the most common error and easiest to

pinpoint. When you divide a number by zero you will get this
error.
This error is returned when the wrong type of argument is
#VALUE! used. For example if you try to multiply a value by a cell that
has text in it.
This error results when you move your formula, and haven’t
correctly specified which cell references should be fixed and
#REF!
which should move with your formula. Also if you delete some
cells that were a part of your formula.
The most common reason for this error is because the
#NAME? formula has been mistyped and Excel doesn’t recognize what
function you are referring to.
This is a frequent error if you are using Lookup formulas
#N/A!
(especially in VLOOKUP) and the matching cannot be done.
This is an uncommon error and occurs if you haven’t specified
#NULL! your ranges correctly, e.g. typing SUM(B4 B6) instead of
SUM(B4:B6) or SUM(B4,B6).
This is another uncommon error and occurs when you supply
an invalid number to your formula e.g. if you are using
#NUM!
negatives where a positive number is required by your
function.
New Error only in Office 365 with Dynamic Arrays. If a spilled
range is blocked by text or values in the cells below, then you
#SPILL
get this error. The error can be corrected by removing the
contents of the cells below.
New Error only in Office 365 with Dynamic Arrays - common
#CALC
for the FILTER function when it can't find a match.

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Data Cleaning & Management Tools
SORT DATA
Use the sort options to give order to your data.
To sort more than one category use Custom Sort.

FILTER DATA
Use shortcut key Ctrl+Shift+L to toggle the filter buttons on and
off. You can copy, change and delete filter results.

FIND & REPLACE

Ctrl+F brings up the Find dialog box.
Ctrl+H brings up the Replace dialog box.
You can also search for a
specific formatting and
replace it with another one.

REMOVE DUPLICATES
Use Remove Duplicates from the Data tab to get a list of unique
values. Performing this on more than one column ensures you
get a unique list based on the combination of values from the
different columns.

GO TO SPECIAL
Go To Special from the Home tab (Shortcut key
Ctrl+G or F5) can select specific cell types on a
range or sheet.
Once selected you can perform the necessary
action on all the cells in one go.

To copy a formula to more than

one cell in one go, type the
formula and then press
Ctrl+Enter (instead of just Enter)

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Useful Formatting Tools
Center Across Selection Instead of Merge
To center text or values on your report, use Center Across Selection
from Format Cells Alignment Options instead of Merging. This makes it
easier to write formulas, copy specific columns & maintain the report.

Fill → Justify
To fit long text or set of instructions to
a specific number of cells in a column,
select the range, go to Home / Fill /
Justify

Number Formatting Options

Take advantage of the various number formatting options
available under Format Cells (Ctrl+1). For example, use Special
Formatting to format phone numbers properly.

Conditional Formatting
Create conditional formatting rules, including
adding dynamic icons and data bars to your
reports. Take advantage of available built-in
logic.

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Printing Checklist (Page Layout tab)
CHOOSE THE RIGHT ORIENTATION
Is the report taller than wide? Go with Portrait.
Is it wider than tall? Go with Landscape.

ADJUST THE MARGINS

Make the margins slightly narrower to be able to fit in more
content on one page or allow for a higher scaling per page.

DEFINE PRINT AREA

Set a specific are to be printed by selecting the
area first and then from Page Layout tab, select
Print Area / Set Print Area

ADD A HEADER & FOOTER

In the Page Layout tab, click on the more
features arrow. Go to the Header/Footer
tab and add a custom header/footer.

REPEAT ROWS & COLUMNS (If needed)

Print Titles lets you select one or more rows & columns
that you’d like repeated on each printed sheet.

PRINT PREVIEW BEFORE PRINTING

Add Print Preview & Print to your Quick Access
Toolbar (QAT). If it’s missing from there, click on the
arrow on the QAT and select Print Preview & Print.
This will add it to your QAT.

Keep an eye on the scale to make sure

resolution is high enough for the reader

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Spreadsheet Design Principles
INPUT SEPARATE FROM OUTPUT
Keep raw data on a separate tab to your final report.

DEFINE A PURPOSE FOR EACH SHEET

Each sheet should have a purpose. For example, the “report” tab is
for final findings, the “calculation” tab organizes and prepares the
data for the report tab.

HAVE CONTROL (SHEET)

Add a “control” sheet to record any changes you make to the
structure of your file. Make sure you include time stamps.

ADD INSTRUCTIONS
Who will be using the file? Your colleagues? The client? Another
department? Add a short explanation to describe how the file is
organized.

KEEP FILE BACKUPS

Make sure you take copies of your file from time to time. Specially if
you’re revising formulas & values, keep a hard-coded version of your
file (You can copy and paste special as values the data in the tabs).

PREPARE FOR PRINT

Who are you sending or sharing the file with? Is there a chance they
would print the file or save it as PDF? If yes, prepare it for print.

CONSISTENT COLOR CODING

Keep colors consistent throughout the report. If you have input
fields that are a specific color in one tab, keep it the same across
your sheets and workbooks.

FORMAT FOR APPRECIATION

A little bit of formatting goes a long way. Keep your report organized
with minimum formatting. This gives it a more professional look.

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Save Time Formatting Reports
Define Cell Styles
Take some time to define the cell styles you use most when you create
reports. Do you use a specific header? A special format for input cells? Adjust
the existing cell styles or create your own.

You can also define a default style for Excel Tables.

Create a Template
Once you’ve adjusted the cell styles, updated the workbook theme and any
other adjustments you like to have as starting point when you open a new
workbook, save the file as a template.
Before you do that make sure your workbook is empty (unless you require a
specific setup or instructions you’d like to keep for every workbook)

Go to Save As – Save the workbook as

.xltx
You can open the template by going to
File / NEW.

Once you start working

in the file and you want
to save it, Excel will save
it as a normal Excel
workbook, i.e. xlsx file.

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Chart Productivity Tips
Shortcut to Insert your Default Chart
#1 – Select the data, then Alt + F1 ton insert the chart on the same sheet.
#2 – Select the data, then F11 to create a new chart sheet.

If you’d like to change your default chart

from column to another type, e.g., Line
chart: Go to Insert Chart dialog box,
right-mouse click on the chart type you
want and select Set as Default Chart.

Turn your Source Data to an Excel Table

If you’d like your chart to

automatically include
new values, turn your
source data into an Excel
table.

Add Your Own Axis to Sparklines

To make it easier to spot which data

point belongs to which category, create
a manual axis directly under the
sparklines.
This works for fixed data points
otherwise you’ll have to think of ways to
make it dynamic with formulas.

If you create a set of charts that need to stay together,

make sure you group them. Select the charts by holding
down Ctrl, right-mouse click & Group.

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Working with Pivot Tables
Get Quick Insights from Data
Pivot Tables Enable you to analyze your data (such as filter, sort, group, drill-
down) without writing complex calculations.

- Which company sells the most?

- Which product generates the most sales?
- Which customer accounts for the highest % of total sales?

Checklist Before Creating a Pivot Table

✓ Make sure your data is in a Data List format
• Each column has a header (no blanks)
• No empty columns in your data table
• No summations embedded in your data table
✓ BEST method is to transform data to an Excel Table
• Ensures Pivot Table is updated when new data is added
• Ensures data is properly organized and each column has a header

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Tips for Pivot Tables
Use Tabular Design For Pivot Table Layout

To get the header for the category field on

your Pivot Table report, use Tabular Design.
Go to Design Tab, Report Layout and select
Show in Tabular Form.

Rename Pivot Headers

Instead of Sum of Quantity in the Pivot field header, change this to Quantity
and add a space character either before or after.

Use Number Format Instead of Format Cells

To change the number format for the values
in a Pivot Table, use Number Format instead
of Format Cells.
This ensures the field keeps the formatting as
the Pivot Table expands.

Double-click on Values to Get the Full List

To get a list of each line of data making up the value shown on the Pivot
Table, you can double-click the cell value. This creates a new sheet with all
the rows of data that make up the aggregated value.

Remove the Check-mark for Autofit

One Pivot Table default setting that can get annoying is to automatically
autofit the Pivot Table columns.
In case you want this turned off, go to Pivot Table options: PivotTable
Analyze > Options and un-check Autofit column widths on update.

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Why Use Power Query
Availability of Power Query
Since Excel 2016 Power Query is a part of Excel.
It’s called Get & Transform in the Data tab.
If you have Excel 2010 or Excel 2013 – you can use Power Query by
installing the add-in from HERE (if you Google “Power Query add-in”
download, you will find the official Microsoft site for downloading).

Why Power Query?

If your raw data set is in another place, for example: another file, text file,
the web etc. you can use Power Query to import and transform the data.
You can also use it for data in the same workbook.
If you have a messy data set and you find it difficult to create formulas or
a pivot table to analyze the data, Power Query can help you transform
the messy data to a clean tabular data set.

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THANK YOU!
Please take a few seconds to
leave a review for the course.
Your support is very much
appreciated.

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More Learning…

If you’d like to improve your Excel knowledge, check out my

other courses:
Excel Dynamic Arrays Beginner to Expert
Unlock Excel VBA & Excel Macros
Visually Effective Excel Dashboards
Advanced Excel: Top Excel Tips and Formulas
Excel Charts: Visualization Secrets for Impressive Reports
Ultimate Excel Waterfall Chart Course

I share free content on YouTube every Thursday. My

Channel is under my name.

You’ll find detailed blog posts and articles related to Excel

and PowerPoint on my Website at www.XelPlus.com

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