Microsoft Word Tips - Ten Ideas to Improve Your Word Skills

Word in a very powerful word processing package, but would take even the most accomplished PC user days to learn all its features, time the majority of Word users haven't got. I have therefore put together a few quick tips to help you improve your Word skills.

The below instructions are applicable to Word 2007.

Formatting text - to format a single word in a sentence, simply left-click on the word, then press the CTRL button plus, for example I for italics, B for bold etc. Right-clicking on the word brings up the Quick Style box where you can change more attributes. To select a sentence, press CTRL and right-click in the sentence, a paragraph, triple-click in the paragraph or to select an entire document, CTRL+A.
Disabling Word's mini toolbar - although useful for formatting common options with a mouse click, it can interrupt when you want to click and drag text. You can disable the mini toolbar by clicking the Office button, select Options, click Popular in the left column and deselect "Show Mini Toolbar".
Insert tables - tables are the best way to arrange data in a Word document. Position your cursor where you would like to insert the table in your document, open the Insert ribbon, (the horizontal graphics across the page top), click Table in the Tables section to reveal a grid of boxes on the drop-down menu. Here you can set the number of rows and columns for your table. To customise the table, right-click on the double-headed arrow at the top left table corner. Select Table Properties for advanced table formatting.
Automatically sort data - you alphabetise a list (names, numbers, dates) after you complete it using Word's Sort feature. Highlight the data you want to sort, click the Sort button in the Paragraph section of the Home ribbon, use the dropdown box to select the type of data selected and choose ascending or descending order.
Change paper size - by default, new documents in Word are set up for letter-sized paper. But, you may want to print on a different size such as A4. It's easy to change the paper size in Word 2007 by opening the Page Layout ribbon, find the Page Layout section, click Size and select More Paper Sizes.
Setting page margins - the default page side margins of 1¼ inches and top/bottom of 1 inch in Word are suitable for most documents. However, if you need to change the margins to squeeze an extra line or two onto a page, rather than use a second sheet of paper, just click the Page Layout tab and then margins, where you will find extra settings and a custom tab to make your own.
Adding a picture watermark - watermarks are often used to provide document information - to show it's a copy, a working draft or to embellish the document with an image or logo. Open the Page Layout ribbon, click the Page Background section and click Watermark. Select Custom Watermark on the dropdown menu, then tick Picture Watermark, select Picture, navigate to your photo and select the image you want. You can automatically or manually scale, and select Washout. Then click Apply and OK.
Inserting a caption - sometime you might want to add captions to refer to figures or other items within your document to make it easier for readers to understand content. Select the object, open the References on the main menu and click on Insert Caption in the Captions section. In the Label box, select type in the Position box, specify the placement, and in the Caption box, add any additional information. Then click OK.
Showing the number of words - it can often be useful to know how many words there are in your document. To turn word count on, right-click the Status bar at the bottom of the window and select Word Count. To see the word count for a selection, just highlight the text. For more detailed information such as character count, open the Review ribbon and click Word Count in the Proofing section.
Disabling editing languages - sometimes correctly spelled words are marked as incorrect. This can happen if the editing language has somehow been changed. Click the Office button, select Word Options and click Language Settings on the Popular tab. Then ensure your preferred language is selected under Primary editing language and click Remove for any unwanted languages under Enabled editing languages. Click OK and Word will then only check spelling and grammar for the language you've chosen.

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Improve Performance of Your Excel Macros

Taking Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses is the first step in adding new functionality to your spreadsheet projects. However it is only the beginning. Efficient and powerful macro programming takes experience and practice to achieve.

Here are a few tips to get recent, or not-so-recent, graduates of Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses pointed in the right direction.

Reduce Traffic Between Worksheets And Macros

Passing data back and forth from cells on the worksheet to your macros is a very slow process. Minimizing this communication greatly speeds up macro function. Some users, inspired to use techniques learned in Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses, use macros for simple calculations better handled by worksheet functions. This may be for readability with complex formulas. It is easier to understand a macro name than a huge equation.

The problem is the more readable macro solution is slower because of the communication overhead. In a small spreadsheet the speed difference is undetectable, but in a large project unnecessary macros can slow calculations down dramatically.

Another aspect of worksheet-macro traffic that is not always covered in Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses is the number of read/write events. It is much faster to read a block of a thousand cells than to read each cell individually. If a macro is acting on a large range of data, read the range in first before looping through the data rather than looping and reading a cell on each iteration.

Avoid Worksheet Functions In Macros

Graduates of Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses often find it is convenient to use existing worksheet functions, from simple Max formulas to advanced numerical functions, rather than re-inventing the wheel. However worksheet functions are slow.

A large part of this is the communication problem from the last section however sometimes the existing function is simply too complex for the macro designer's needs. Excel functions are designed to cover a wide range of possibilities so contain many logic tests and extra code to cover eventualities that your macro may never face.

Even built in macro functions discussed in Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses are often less efficient than simply doing it yourself. If there is a VBA function you use often, try speed tests to see if it would be faster to enter equations directly instead.

Provide Feedback

A watched spreadsheet never calculates. Sometimes your macros may be a marvel of efficient design, a prime example of skills learned in Microsoft Excel 2003 VBA courses, but users may perceive it as slow.

Any time the user is going to have to wait for more than a few seconds, provide some kind of feedback. An updating dialogue, a progress bar, or a status cell on the sheet are ways you can give the user some indication of how much remains to be done.

Don't worry about predicting the time left, but a percentage complete at least lets the user decide whether to wait or go get a cup of coffee.

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Quick Staff Presentation - Uncover 3 Powerful Ways to Improve Your Presentation

With so many meetings for employees, it is easy to feel weary and tired. I think there is a kind of meeting fatigue. Meetings become predictable. Same process and same outcome. I wonder how much time is lost to unproductive meetings. The situation is this. You have 30 minutes to present the culture changes going on in the organizations. This might help.

1. Offer new information.
Instead of copying what has been done in the past and simply rehashing it, offer new information. Assuming you have 30 minutes, try this. Ask the next 5 employees you see and ask them for 5 minutes of their time. It can go like this. I'm in a bind and I really need your help, would you help me? Here's what I need...in the next 2 minutes think of 5 things that is new in our culture change. OK, you now have 25 observations in 2 minutes. Ask each to share which is most unique. Then ask for the story behind the change. If you want to hit a home run, invite one of your guest employees to share the story in the meeting. You've got new information, its as fresh as new vegetables.

2. Tell your secrets.
The meeting begins. The boss calls on you to share what's going on that's new. You start to share...smile. Share your story of the 5 employees 30 minutes earlier. Tell how you found the new information. Now is the time to celebrate them. It could go like this. Tom did I miss anything. Julie what was really neat to you when we talked. Be sure everyone knows who helped. Graciously thank them publicly...even closing with "I owe you guys, thank you."

3. Make it interactive.
Interactive makes the presentation fresh, and personal. The presentation becomes a dialog rather than a speech. It will help create energy in others. End with asking 5 -7 employees to answer a question. Be creative with a positive question which guides towards a good ending. Make sure you've summarized...the new information, your secret help, and have fun with interaction.

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A Sure-Fire Confidence Builder - Improve Your Eye Contact

We've all heard that eye contact is essential for successful public speaking. Sometimes, however, looking audience members in the eye isn't easy, especially when nervousness and self-consciousness hijack our thinking.

Recently, I coached a client who had a severe case of eye-avoidedness. It was the first issue he brought up. And of course, I saw it in action immediately. Even though we sat in armchairs no more than 4 feet apart, I'd estimate that he avoided looking at me about 80% of the time.

He knew this was a problem both in presentations and interpersonal communication, but he had no idea how to overcome his shyness. And that, in fact, turned out to be an important clue for me. He mentioned that he was an introvert. One speaking trait introverts sometimes have is a desire to "go away" in their own mind and fashion a carefully structured and gift-wrapped statement or response. In the rough-and-tumble of conversations and Q & A, however, we seldom have the luxury of doing this.

Before we tried an exercise I had in mind, I gave him the two reasons why I believe strong eye contact is critical to successful speaking situations:

1. You will never exert influence on people you don't look in the eye! When was the last time you were persuaded by someone who wouldn't look at you while he or she was talking?

2. People are easier to get a response from than the back wall. I often hear from my trainees, "But if I look anyone right in the eye, I'll forget what I'm saying!" At this point I usually respond: "Which do you think is going to give you something back, the ceiling or the person you're talking to?"

Our listeners should give us energy--not suck it out of us like an audience of vampires! Speaking to "the window of the soul" (the eyes) as you say something important to people, and observing their response, should be a delightful activity rather than a painful one. People want you to look at them when you talk. If you do, they'll trust you more.

As it turned out, the exercise we practiced next turned out to be even more helpful for this client than I anticipated. Here it is:

I had prepared around 20 impromptu speech topics, which I folded and placed in an envelope. My client had to reach in, choose a slip and read the topic, then look up at me and start talking about it. Understand: I gave him no time to prepare. (No nicely wrapped speech package possible here!)

The topics were intentionally ones that he would have no expertise in; and in fact, each topic had no right or wrong answer. For instance, they included, "What do you like about the United Nations, and why?" And: "What do you think was the most interesting ancient civilization?," and so on.

For a minute or two each time, my client spoke on each of four items he'd selected. And I'd say that 90% of his responses were delivered looking directly at me, with rock-solid eye contact!

You see, he couldn't "go away" and marshal his thoughts and relevant data on the subject, for his professional experience hadn't given him any special knowledge. The exercise was simple and clear: he had to look his listeners in the eye even if he wasn't sure what he was about to say. His job was to reach his listener with what he was saying, not fashion the perfect answer.

The exercise is a sure-fire confidence builder, and I've used it many times for that purpose. But it was nice to know that it works well as a tool for strengthening eye contact, too.

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