New Shortcuts Learnt in This Section

[F4] - Use F4 inside the formula bar on a cell reference to cycle through different referencing options (absolute, mixed & relative).

Excels Essential Formula Rules

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.

Formulas in a range should be consistent

Dont 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).

Excels Essential Referencing Rules

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.

Connect Cell References

Use & to connect one cell reference with another.

For example: =A1&B1

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

Remember: Your downloadable course notes cover the most important points. Make sure you keep them handy.

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