The philosophy behind Rockstar Excel is that building a spreadsheet is a creative act.
Being a rockstar at Excel isn’t about knowing how to do things. It’s about knowing when and why to do them.
So how do you know which tools, methods, and strategies to use in different situations?
To help, we’ve developed the ROCKSTAR method for what to think about when building a spreadsheet. It stands for:
- Result
- Overview
- Context
- Knowledge
- Structure
- Tools
- Action
- Review
Let’s look at each of these steps.
Result
The first thing to consider is what result you want. What’s the purpose of the spreadsheet? What information should it give?
Overview
Next decide what the spreadsheet will look like. What columns will it have? Will it be one tab or multiple tabs?
If you have trouble visualizing it in your head, quickly sketch it on paper.
You don’t have to decide every detail, and may end up changing it.
But you need to choose something to start, so you can move forward.
Context
What is this spreadsheet for?
Are you solving a quick math problem, or are you presenting a report to the CEO where everything has to be perfectly clear and formatted?
Is it going to be used once, or will you be updating it with new data for the next five years?
Is it just for yourself, or will you be sharing it with others?
Are you dealing with lots of data? Will you be manually typing information or importing/copy-pasting it?
Do you have to handle weird data and errors?
Are you confident you’ll get everything right? What are the consequences if you make mistakes?
These impact the choices you make when you build your spreadsheet.
Knowledge
What information do you already know?
What data do you already have that will be inputs to your spreadsheet?
Structure & Tools
After you’ve thought through the Result, Overview, Context, and Knowledge, it’s time to figure out the Structure and Tools.
This is where you decide how information flows through the spreadsheet, based on the tools you know how to use.
The Structure and Tools need to be chosen together, because they’re inherently interrelated.
The structure of the spreadsheet determines the best tools to use, and the most effective tools determine the structure of your spreadsheet.
Action
After you’ve planned how to build your spreadsheet, it’s time to take action and do it.
Layout the spreadsheet based on the Overview. Then take the information on a journey through the Structure you’ve chosen using the Tools you selected.
Review
Look over your spreadsheet to confirm everything makes sense.
Use your brain and really think about it. Monthly sales shouldn’t be $15 trillion or negative $7,000.
Enter test data to make sure it gives expected results.
Recalculate numbers a second way to confirm they add up/match. For example, the sum of all the subtotals should equal the total. The cash on your balance sheet should equal the cash on your cash flow statement.
Use formulas to check this automatically.
Make your spreadsheet well-formatted and print-ready, if this is appropriate for the Context.
The ROCKSTAR method gives you a framework for building spreadsheets
That’s the ROCKSTAR method. Once again, its:
- Result – What’s the goal of the spreadsheet?
- Overview – Design the general layout.
- Context – Consider more specifics of the purpose of the spreadsheet.
- Knowledge – What data/information makes up your inputs?
- Structure – How information flows through the spreadsheet. (Determined at the same time as Tools.)
- Tools – Which methods/techniques will best achieve the spreadsheet’s goals. (Determined at the same time as Structure.)
- Action – Actually build the spreadsheet.
- Review – Ensure it works and makes sense, and do final formatting.
Let me know if it works for you.
And remember, you can ask questions about Excel at the submission form.
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