5 Essential Excel Tips Everyone Should Know

Chris Menard here with five great Excel tips every Excel user should know. Learn how to use the UNIQUE function to find out the number of unique employees who took courses, combined this with the COUNTA function to get precise numbers, and effectively utilize the AutoSum feature. Discover how to efficiently move columns and rows using simple keyboard and mouse actions and learn to handle the RANDBETWEEN function to generate numbers that won't change after sorting or filtering. Join me for these essential Excel tips and more in my online training classes! ✅Chapters/Bookmarks 00:00 Introduction to Essential Excel Tips 00:12 Using the UNIQUE Function 00:51 Mastering AutoSum for Multiple Regions 01:59 Efficiently Moving Columns and Rows 03:06 Fixing RANDBETWEEN Function Issues 04:06 Conclusion and Further Learning and make sure you subscribe to my channel! The UNIQUE function is a powerful tool for identifying distinct values in a dataset. Here's how to use it: Start with a list of employees and the courses they've taken Use the UNIQUE function to find out how many unique employees took courses Highlight the employee column and apply the UNIQUE function To get the actual number of unique employees, combine UNIQUE with the COUNTA function For example, if you have a list of employees in column A and their courses in column B, you can use this formula: =COUNTA(UNIQUE(A:A)) This will give you the exact number of unique employees who took courses, helping you quickly analyze your data without manual counting. ✅Mastering AutoSum for Multiple Regions AutoSum is one of Excel's most popular functions, and it becomes even more powerful when working with multiple regions. Here's how to use it effectively: Select the first region you want to sum (e.g., B6:E10) Hold down the Ctrl key and select the second region (e.g., B12:E16) Press Alt + = (the AutoSum shortcut) to sum both regions simultaneously To sum entire columns or rows, select a larger range that includes your data and the empty cells below or to the right AutoSum will intelligently pick up subtotals and ignore empty cells ✅Efficiently Moving Columns and Rows Reorganizing your data is often necessary, and Excel provides a simple way to move columns and rows without copy-pasting. Here's how: Moving Columns: 1) Select the column you want to move 2) Hold down the Shift key 3) Move your mouse to the left border of the selected column 4) Click and drag the column to its new location 5) Release the mouse button, then release the Shift key Moving Rows: 1) Select the row you want to move 2) Hold down the Shift key 3) Click on either the top or bottom border of the selected row 4) Drag the row to its new location 5) Release the mouse button, then release the Shift key This method allows you to quickly reorganize your data without the risk of overwriting existing information or losing formulas. This method allows you to quickly sum multiple areas of your spreadsheet without creating separate formulas for each region, saving time and reducing the risk of errors. ✅Tip number 5 is when you need to paste values; you can right-click the border, drag, and Copy here as values only. Animated GIF https://chrismenardtraining.com/_CMT/images/photos/Original/1838.jpg ✅Blog Post https://chrismenardtraining.com/post/5-essential-excel-tips-everyone-should-know ✅Chris Menard's online training courses ➡️Microsoft 365 Copilot https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/courses/copilot ➡️Excel Essentials https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/courses/excel-essentials ➡️Excel Intermediate https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/courses/excel-intermediate ➡️Excel Advanced https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/courses/excel-advanced ➡️Excel Bundle - All three Excel courses combined https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/bundles/mastering-excel ➡️Microsoft Teams: Beginner to Pro https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/courses/microsoft-teams-beginner-to-pro ➡️OneNote Essentials https://courses.chrismenardtraining.com/courses/onenote -- EQUIPMENT USED --------------------------------- ○ My camera – https://amzn.to/3vdgF5E ○ Microphone - https://amzn.to/3gphDXh ○ Camera tripod – https://amzn.to/3veN6Rg ○ Studio lights - https://amzn.to/3vaxyy5 ○ Dual monitor mount stand - https://amzn.to/3vbZSjJ ○ Web camera – https://amzn.to/2Tg75Sn ○ Shock mount - https://amzn.to/3g96FGj ○ Boom Arm - https://amzn.to/3g8cNi6 -- SOFTWARE USED --------------------------------- ○ Screen recording – Camtasia – https://chrismenardtraining.com/camtasia ○ Screenshots – Snagit – https://chrismenardtraining.com/snagit ○ YouTube keyword search – TubeBuddy – https://www.tubebuddy.com/chrismenard DISCLAIMER: Links included in this description might be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service with the links I provide, I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you! Thank you for supporting my channel, so I can continue to provide you with free content each week!