A few months ago I purchased a sweet wagon from Costco. Sadly, one of the wheels was misaligned, resulting in a jerky ride.

I gave up trying to fix it, when one day I noticed the same wagon on sale for $30 off. Not only was my wagon defective, but it was also $30 more expensive than a brand new one.

When I tried to return it, I was told it was outside the 90 days return window.

Fortunately, another Costco staff member walked by and VOLUNTEERED the following:

“Here’s what you do. You buy 2 new wagons, swap out the old one for a new one, and then return both for the maximum refund leaving you paying the discounted price instead of the full price.”

This guy went out of his way to give me the Costco cheat codes so I could have the best possible outcome.

Even though Costco lost money on this deal short-term, I would argue that long-term, they more than made up for it:

1. I will shop at Costco more often, and spend more per visit.
2. I will continue to sing Costco’s praises, which could bring them new customers, or have their existing customers shop there more often, and spend more per visit.

Sounds like a win-win to me.

So how does this apply to spreadsheets?

The way I see it, if you create spreadsheets, you are in the service industry. Whether you are creating a spreadsheet for a client, colleague, or other stakeholder, it is your responsibility to VOLUNTEER relevant information that will ensure the best possible outcome for them.

For example, that means if your client requests a specific data structure or format that will make it harder for them to access their data in the future – don’t stay quiet! Instead, channel your inner Costco energy, and volunteer a better approach that improves their experience both short-term and long-term.

Want some guidance on how to adopt this strategy to your current job or project? Drop me a line with the word “Costco” and we’ll take it from there.

#themfirst #bigpicture #winwin #volunteerinfo #excelwell #sharetheexcellove

For almost an hour, I sat on the park bench and watched both my kids play in the sandbox with 2 new friends.

No kicking, crying, or snatching.

Instead, they shared a pale & shovel, made pretend food together, and I’m happy to report that nobody got sand in their eyes.

Proud papa moment.

A year ago there’s no way I could have taken such a back seat. I would have been right there in the sandbox, guiding their behavior, mainly leading by example.

I’ve come to realize that to be a successful parent, I must change gears constantly, and apply different strategies to new situations, sometimes at the drop of a hat.

Similarly, to be a successful Excel consultant, I must go through multiple stages for every project.

I start out holding the client’s hand very closely. Once I understand their requirements I enter the creative problem solving phase, and then slowly I start whittling down the solution to be more simple, clear, and efficient.

Eventually, I must completely let go and take a back seat while I let the end-user interact with the tool that I created.

Ideally they don’t just leverage the Excel tool in a singular, limited way either. If I’ve done my job well, I’ve built the tool to be dynamic and scalable, while also teaching the end-user how to expand the tool’s scope and functionality to suit their future needs.

It’s a truly beautiful progression that I feel privileged to experience regularly.

If you’re building an internal Excel tool for your team or department, or even a client-facing Excel tool, and would like some guidance on how to navigate and optimize the process, drop me a line and I’ll be happy to share my pale and shovel skills with you :).

#proudpapa #constantevolution #shiftgears #parentwisdom #excelwell #sharetheexcellove

Over the past few days Amina has been exhibiting some “cranky pants” behavior. In other words, an irritable, irrational, and erratic presence.

Even more than usual for a toddler.

My main challenge is that she is not quite old enough to identify or articulate exactly what is bothering her.

I suspect it has something to do with the change in her schedule and temporary decrease of stimulation during the day. But, all I can really do as her father is start reading between the lines, gathering clues, and making educated guesses.

Fortunately, as an Excel instructor and consultant over the past 14 years, I have some experience in this area.

Allow me to explain.

In order to be an effective instructor, I am constantly looking for signs in my students of confusion, frustration, or anything else that could be interfering with their ability to learn.

Sure, they have a great deal of responsibility here as well. But, as the chosen Excel expert, I have a sacred responsibility to help my clients learn Excel. And if I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that my students (much like my children) won’t always tell me what’s bothering them, and it’s up to me to dig deeper.

And you know something?

I’m cool with that.

#igotyourback #crankypants #readbetweenthelines #minimysteries #parentwisdom #excelwell #sharetheexcellove

“Stum!”

That’s what my son said to me, just like that, with no context.

Any idea what he could have been talking about?

Me neither, at first. Eventually I realized he meant “solar system,” referring to a video he wanted to watch.

The challenge for me was that he was using an abbreviation with absolutely no context or other clues as to its meaning.

I can’t fault him too much, given that he isn’t even 2 years old and can’t say the full term “solar system.”

I see this ALL THE TIME with the spreadsheets I come across, whether it’s technical jargon, or highly specific abbreviations for a particular industry or organization.

Don’t get me wrong, abbreviations certainly have a value. They save time speaking the full phrase, save space on the screen, and can even communicate a familiarity with a specific topic.

More often than not however, I find abbreviations to be unnecessarily confusing.

Given that, here are 4 tips to improving the clarity of abbreviations in your spreadsheets:

1. Make the abbreviation as intuitive as possible. For example, abbreviate “Manager” with “Mgr.”
2. Provide context. For example, use the “Mgr” abbreviation inside the “Manager” tab (worksheet).
3. Provide documentation. For example, add a glossary tab or section where you spell out “Mgr = Manager.”
4. Give a verbal and/or written heads up. For example, in the body of the email with your spreadsheet attached, mention explicitly that “Mgr = Manager.”

#contextplease #succinctandclear #abbreviationetiquette #kidssaythedarndestthings #excelwell #sharetheexcellove

“The slide is too big for me.” Said my daughter Amina, at the top of the tallest slide in the playground. Up until this point, she had never gone down such a big slide by herself.

5 seconds later, my son Barak, who also never before went down a slide that size by himself, proceeded to march to the edge, sit down, and unlock a brand new milestone.

Can you guess how Amina reacted?

She blinked a few times, hesitated as if she were performing some internal calculations, and followed in her younger brother’s footsteps.

First of all, proud papa moment.

Even without realizing it, by sliding first Barak provided an EXAMPLE for his sister, which helped her see that it was safe, achievable, and fun!

Witnessing this all unfold, I couldn’t help but see the parallel in spreadsheets.

Whether inside of a Google Form survey question, or part of end-user instructions within a spreadsheet, I always recommend writing out the first example answer or data entry record.

That way, users don’t have to scratch their heads and guess what you were looking for. From their perspective, it’s also not as daunting as starting from scratch.

So the next time you create a survey or a spreadsheet, remember that the slide is NOT too big. Make it easy by including an example.

Want some help making your spreadsheets even more user friendly and clear? Leave a comment, FOR EXAMPLE:

“Thanks for the insight! I have a spreadsheet I could use some help with, and I would like to set up some 1-on-1 Excel Training.”

See what I did there? 😉

#proudpapa #childmilestones #ithinkican #giveexamples #userexperience #excelwell #sharetheexcellove