Showing posts with label Drop Down List. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Drop Down List. Show all posts

Monday, December 6, 2021

2021 College Football Bowl Prediction Pool

The college football conference championships were played this past weekend which means the 2021 NCAA college football bowl season is here again! Therefore, it’s time to make your picks and predictions about who you think will win each bowl game. One of the best times of the holiday season (other than giving and receiving gifts) is being able to talk trash to your relatives about their terrible bowl picks. This year has the added bonus of not just single bowl games but the eighth year of a four team playoff to determine the national champion.




Features for this year's bowl prediction pool over the previous college football bowl pool manager spreadsheets include the following:

  • Easy method to make each bowl game worth a different point value, so the national championship game and semi-finals can be worth more points, or however you want to customize it.

  • Updated leaderboard tab with new stats

  • Separate entry sheet to pass out to participants or co-workers that can be imported automatically by a built-in macro

  • Complete NCAA college football bowl schedule with game times and TV stations

  • New stat sheet to track each conference's record during bowl season. Graph shows total conference teams and total conference wins

bowl pick em excel sheet download


The bowl prediction sheets include the football helmet designs for every team (taken from the 2017 college football helmet schedule spreadsheet), their win-loss record, and the logo for all bowl games. I added the helmets so those players who aren't big college football fans can pick a winner based on their favorite helmet design!

Download the CFP Pool Manager and Single Entry Form here

I'm working on a new version where you could do confidence points that you can test out now and give me feedback.



Download the 2021 CFP Bowl Prediction Pool Manager.xlsm file here

Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, find any bugs, or have any suggestions for improvement. I love that people are using this Bowl Prediction Game to help raise money for charity, that's so awesome to hear! What team are you rooting for?


Sunday, January 31, 2016

5 Lessons Learned from Super Bowl Squares 2016 to Improve Your Excel Skills

Last week I released the latest and greatest version of my Super Bowl squares game template with more ways to play than before. Even if you don’t care for football or sports, numerous lessons can be learned by dissecting this spreadsheet, including:
  • How to assign a macro to a command button
  • How to clear cells with a macro
  • How to generate random numbers in Excel with a macro
  • How to use a macro to create a list based on cell values
  • How to create a dynamic drop down list
I thought I would offer a few more details and insights into how each of these features work.

1. How to assign a macro to a command button

To insert a command button into your Excel spreadsheet you’ll want the Developer tab to be available. Go to File > Options> Customize Ribbon and under Main Tabs check Developer. Now at the top of Excel you should see the Developer tab. Click on the Insert button drop drown, then under form controls click Command Button. Place the button wherever you want along with the desired size. To have a macro run on the click of the button, right click the command button and select Assign macro. Pick your macro and you’re good to go!


2. How to Clear a Range with an Excel Macro

To clear a range with an Excel macro, use the code below. When you click the “Clear Numbers” button, it is linked to this macro and will clear the range.

Sub Clear_Random_Numbers()
'clear the random numbers
Dim DelRange As Range
Set DelRange = Range("B5:B14")
DelRange.ClearContents
End Sub


Unlike a formula, if you insert a row or column and your target range moves, the macro will not update automatically like a formula will. Keep this in mind when making changes to a spreadsheet containing a macro. It’s a good idea to have the layout and format fixed as much as possible before writing your macro code.



3. How to generate random numbers in Excel with a macro


To generate random numbers in a range with a macro, modify the code below. This code generates random numbers between 0 and 9. To start from 1, take out the “-1”. To get more random numbers, change 10 to 100 or whatever value you need.

Sub Generate_Random_Numbers()
'define range of cells for NFC random numbers
Dim NFCRange As Range
Set NFCRange = Range("B5:B14")
NFCRange.ClearContents
For Each c In NFCRange
Do
c.Value = (Int((10 * Rnd + 1))) - 1
Loop Until WorksheetFunction.CountIf(NFCRange, c.Value) < 2
Next

4. Macro to Create a List Based on Cell Values


The next macro for the Super Bowl squares sheet is for the Assign Names Randomly sheet. This style of play allows users to enter their name then input how many squares they want. So we need to generate the complete list of names. The key to this program is getting the row numbers to add correctly.

Nick 3
Sarah 2
Henry 1

List would look like this:

Nick
Nick
Nick
Sarah
Sarah
Henry

How do we get the result? Use loops to repeat the code that adds the name to the list.

Sub Assign_Random_Number_For_Names()
'stop screen updating so macro runs faster
Application.ScreenUpdating = False
'clear the range
Dim DelRange As Range
Set DelRange = Range("AA2:AA101")
DelRange.ClearContents

'generate a list of all the names in order to populate the field
Dim row As Integer
Dim NumberSquares As Integer
Dim Squares As Integer
Dim RowNum As Integer
Dim PlayerName As String

RowNum = 2

For row = 2 To 101

NumberSquares = Excel.Cells(row, 24)

For Squares = 1 To NumberSquares
PlayerName = Excel.Cells(row, 23)

Excel.Cells(RowNum, 27) = PlayerName

RowNum = RowNum + 1

Next

Next

5. How to create a dynamic drop down list


In this spreadsheet you may have also noticed I used a dynamic list – a drop down list where the values change based on other cell’s value. There are only one hundred squares in Super Bowl squares, so when each player picks how many squares they want, the total value can only add to one hundred. When making your selection it should only show how many squares remain, basically it needs to subtract from 100 the total value of squares already entered. This is done in column P using an IF and ROW formula. If the total value of squares taken is less than one hundred, then show the row number, if not, show nothing.



I hope by examining this template you’ve learned a thing or two about Excel.

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Super Bowl Squares 2016 Excel Template for Office Pools

Match-ups for the 50th Super Bowl are set which means it's time to download your Super Bowl Squares 2016 Excel template for office pools. Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos will play the Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 on Sunday, February 7th at 6:30pm. To make the big game even more fun start a football office pool using our printable Super Bowl spreadsheet. Fill in the squares, watch the game, laugh at the commercials, and see who wins and maybe make a little money at the same time, or help. If you’re a fan of a team that like mine (the Factory of Sadness) that will never make it to the championship (or playoffs for that matter), then playing Super Bowl Squares will make watching the game more exciting and gives you something to actually root for. Others may be torn between cheering for their favorite team and cheering for their squares.


This year’s Super Bowl Squares spreadsheet includes three different versions and you can choose the way you want to play:

1. Printable version - This print ready version contains a blank grid, simply print it off and write all the player’s names down on the piece of paper. It’s quick and easy!

2. Pick your own squares - Manage the office Super Bowl pool directly in Excel. In this version, each player gets to pick what squares they want. Once all are taken, press the randomize button to generate the random score numbers.  No modifications are necessary, though you can if you so desire.

3. Assign squares randomly - In this new version, type each player's name in the manager sheet and use the drop down menu to assign how many squares to give each player. Then click the Assign Names Randomly button and it will automatically populate the grid with all of the names.

super bowl spreadsheet




Super Bowl Squares Rules & How to Play


Listed below are the basic instructions on how to play Super Bowl Squares (which are also included within the spreadsheet for the three different versions, along with an example):

1. Participants “purchase” individuals squares by writing their name in their desired squares, until all one hundred are filled.
2. After all squares are taken, the numbers 0 through 9 are written in the empty horizontal and vertical rows in random order (draw the numbers out of a hat).
3. After the end of each quarter of the game, match the last digit of each team's score to the corresponding square to find the winner.

Tip: 0, 3, and 7 are the best numbers to get. 8, not so much.

Below is a short video tutorial I put together of how to use my Super Bowl Squares template in Excel



Download the Super Bowl spreadsheet for free, simply click the link below then click on the “Download” link in the upper right hand corner.That’s it!

Super Bowl Squares 2016 Excel Template for Office Pools.xlsm download

Or download here to subscribe and receive instant notification whenever the file is updated.

Please let me know in the comments or by email which version you'll use to play - printable, pick your squares, or randomly assign names.

UPDATE: 2017 Super Bowl Squares template available here

Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Schedule Meeting Time Template

Having trouble finding the best time to meet with your team? Use this Excel template to find the perfect date or time for your meeting. Here’s how to use the meeting scheduler template: Enter your name in the input field, then use the drop down menu to add a check mark into the time slots you are available. If you’re not available, then leave it blank. When all the required meeting attendees enter their available times, the spreadsheet shows you the first and second best meeting times.

meeting scheduler in excel spreadsheet

One thing this template will demonstrate is how to insert a check mark in Excel. Go to the top tab "Insert" then in click the "Symbol" button on the far right. A dialog box will appear and you need to select "Wingdings" from the drop down list at the top left. Scroll through the symbols until you find the check mark (wingdings: 252). If you copy and paste the check into a new sheet you may see a ü symbol instead. Simply change the font of that cell to wingdings to get the check mark back.

check mark excel

The next thing you’ll see by dissecting this template will show you how to use a check mark in a drop down list. Another function you can examine is how to use conditional formatting to color a cell based on the cell’s value. In this case, we want to color our cell green if it contains a check mark and red if left blank. As you can see, you will use the "ü" symbol in the formula.



There are similar online tools to help you schedule meetings but most require a fee to unlock all the features. Instead you can use and modify this free Excel template. You could add more functionality, like adding a formula to automatically send an email once you’ve picked the meeting time.

Do you think this template will be useful to you?

Monday, March 16, 2015

11 Excel Lessons from the Best March Madness Brackets


I preach this lesson all the time around here, I know, but you can seriously learn so much about Excel simply by examining templates and other professional's spreadsheets. The 2015 March Madness brackets are no exception. This downloadable template for the 2015 NCAA basketball tournament is an outstanding example of how to harness the full power of Excel and it doesn't involve finances, inventory, tracking, engineering, or charts.

2015 march madness bracket excel

B. David Tyler’s NCAA Excel brackets are the best I've seen, and I've been using his brackets since at least 2010. David doesn't lock or hide anything behind password protection so you can examine all the formulas to see how they work and make any modifications you desire.
There are two files: the bracket manager and the individual bracket file. First, download the files here:

http://www.whistleblows.com/2015/03/ncaa-2015-excel-bracket-and-pool.html

Now, open the files and start picking them apart! Listed below are 11 Excel lessons that can be learned from digging into these two templates:


1. Formatting - The bracket sheets are nice and clean and easy to use. Why is that? Because there isn't a lot of flare or unnecessary stuff to distract you. Only a few colors are used, grid lines are turned off, all the font sizes and colors make sense, etc. Less is more.

2. Hidden sheets - When you first open the NCAA bracket you only see two sheets: instructions and the bracket. But if you right click on one of the sheet tabs and click unhide you’ll see there are some hidden sheets, and it’s these sheets that do a lot of the heavy lifting. The beauty of the brackets is the fact you don't have to modify a single formula yourself, everything has been done for you.


3. Protection - When other users are going to be using your spreadsheet you may want to use protection to protect key cells. Fortunately, David did not use a password on the protection, so you can unprotect the sheets to see what all the exact formulas are.

4. Conditional Formatting - Conditional formatting is where you set up rules to change the format of a cell based on a condition. When you get a pick in the bracket incorrect you’ll notice the font turns red with a strikethrough. This is done through conditional formatting. To see how it works, go to the Home tab, click on Conditional Formatting, then Manage Rules. Show formatting rules for: Sheet: Bracket then scroll down and see all the rules.


5. Organization - The 2015 NCAA bracket shows you how to structure a spreadsheet that is potentially going to be used by thousands of strangers - everything is clearly labeled, instructions are included, and there’s information about where to go if you need help.

6. Drop Down Lists - After you make a few selections, you may get second thoughts and decide to go back and change your picks. To do so, you’ll change the winning team by picking from a drop down list. To see how the drop down list works, go to the Data tab, then Data Validation.You’ll see the setting is List and uses a Defined Name. Go to Formulas tab then Name manager to see all the defined names.

7. Error Checking - Are there little green triangles on the cells that are annoying you? To remove them, go to File>Options>Formulas>Error Checking and uncheck the “Enable background error checking” box. There is also a macro in the bracket file used to check for common errors.


8. Macro: HTML Export File - One of the macros included in the pool manager file shows you how you can export an Excel sheet to a HTML file (called exportLeaderBoard). Open the Excel document and press Alt-F11. This will open up the Visual Basic editor, and by clicking on sheet and module names on the left side of the screen you will be able to view all the code.

9. Macro: Import Multiple Excel sheets - One of the best features of the bracket manager file is the ability to automatically import multiple brackets into the manager all at once. This is done via an Excel macro. All the work is done for the user, as the manager of the pool I simply have to place brackets into a folder then press a button. The user’s of your spreadsheets will really appreciate it if you make everything easy for them.

10. Macro: Hyperlinks - Another nifty feature of the basketball brackets is the ability to simply click on a team to advance them. This is accomplished with a very cool hyperlink macro.  The code is run every time a hyperlink is clicked and it checks to see if a game cell is selected, and if so, it advances the team that was selected.

11. Spreadsheets can be fun! - For many, the mention of Microsoft Excel brings up nightmares of pie charts, pivot tables, and data entry. But using Excel can be fun, especially when you’re competing in an office pool. I really like the feature in the manager file that let’s you run scenarios: what if this team wins, and this teams loses, what are my chances of winning?

I know some readers of this blog skip over the templates I post, especially if they're sports related. but there really are many lessons that can be learned by examining them that you can apply to your own spreadsheets to improve them. Special thanks to David Tyler for continuing to update and post his excellent brackets each and every March. What new lessons about Excel have you learned by breaking down a template?

Monday, December 1, 2014

How to keep Excel drop down list arrows visible

A useful feature in Excel is the drop down list but currently there is no way for a user opening a spreadsheet to be able to tell what cells contain drop down lists without clicking on them. A simple solution that I've used in the past, such as on my personal finance tracking spreadsheet, is to fill all the cells containing drop down lists with the same color.

If you choose this option, you should make a key or insert a text box with a note that the user will see as soon as the spreadsheet is opened.


Another option that's pretty cool is to make a "fake" arrow that is always visible. This video tutorial from Excel Campus shows you exactly how to do so: 


Bill "Mr Excel" Jelen also has a few hacks to make it appear the drop down arrows are always visible that he shares on his YouTube channel (and his was one of the ones featured in my list of 11 best Excel video tutorial channels):



Sorry that the title of this post is a little deceiving as there really is no "good' way to keep Excel drop down list arrows visible but there are some alternative methods. Which of these "hacks" do you like the best? Or do you have your own solution? Or is it never a problem to you?

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Top Excel Help Posts in 2013 and 2014 Goals

2013 is coming to a close so it’s that time of year to sit back and reflect about what transpired this past year and what is to come. I’m going to share my most popular Excel tips from the past year, my most popular Excel templates, and finally share what my goals and vision for next year is.

Top 5 Excel Tips from 2013

 
Listed below are the five most popular Excel tips I published on the Excel Help blog throughout 2013:
 
 

Top 5 Excel Templates from 2013

 
Listed below are the top 5 most popular free Excel templates and spreadsheets I created and made available to download in 2013:
 
 

Goals for 2014



I recently took a poll of my loyal followers by asking them what they would rather see more of on the blog: spreadsheet templates or tips/tricks/macros to improve spreadsheet creation efficiency? My most recent posts have primarily been spreadsheet templates I’ve made available to download for free, such as my newborn feeding schedule, college bowl prediction pool, etc. Something I’ve gotten away from lately is posting tips and macros to improve your Excel efficiency, like my earlier posts on how to create folders automatically, how to create hatching in Excel, etc.


The majority of my reader’s responses asked for more tips, tricks, and macros to improve Excel efficiency. I will still be creating and posting templates as I have been because I think a lot of people find them to be quite useful and you may pick up a few tips just by looking at them and examining the formulas I use. However, I promise to make a strong effort to post more tips and macros, especially for my email subscribers. In fact, I already have several rough drafts already written and am working on some new video tutorials. What would you like to see more of in 2014? Anything specific?


Have a great holiday season, thanks for your continued support, and see you in 2014!!!





Wednesday, July 24, 2013

How to Filter Data in Excel

Learning how to filter data in Excel will help you analyse data faster and become better at your job. Filtering in Excel enables you to display only the data that you want to see on your spreadsheet without deleting anything. It’s a really great way to search through large amounts of information and you know I’m all about Excel tips that help improve your speed and efficiency!
add a filter in excel



There are three types of filters in Excel: list of values, by format, or criteria and you can sort your spreadsheet by order, color or text. What’s the difference between sorting and filtering? Sorting will rearrange the order of your list while filtering keeps the order but actually hides data based on your filter criteria.


To add a Filter in Excel, you can first select a single cell within your range of data but I recommend you highlight all your data (please note you cannot add filters to empty cells). Next, go to the Home tab then the Editing section. Under Sort & Filter click Filter (or use the filter shortcut Crtl+Shift+L). Once filtering is turned on you will see little arrows along your top row of data. Select one of the arrows to set your filter options. If you hover your mouse over the drop down arrow you will see a pop-up message displaying what the value the filter is currently set to (example: equals “Test”).
 
how to filter data in excel


To remove the filtering from your spreadsheet, simply click the Filter button again. If you want to reset the filter to the original values click on the Sort & Filter button and then click “Clear."


You can also turn auto-Filter on and off with a VBA macro:



Sub TurnAutoFilterOn()
'check for filter, turn on if none exists
If Not ActiveSheet.AutoFilterMode Then
ActiveSheet.Range("A1").AutoFilter
End If
End Sub


Turn off AutoFilter with VBA:


Sub TurnFilterOff()
Worksheets("Sheet1").AutoFilterMode = False
End Sub



Here’s a great video showing you exactly how to filter data in Excel:




Follow us on Google Plus for the latest updates when I will talk about dynamic filters and Kalman filters in Excel.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

NCAA Football Bowl Schedule and Pool 2012

2012 ncaa bowl college football predictions pool
The NCAA college football bowl season is finally here which means it’s time to make your picks and predictions about who you think will win each game. One of the best times of the holiday season (other than giving and receiving gifts) is gathering around the TV and rooting for your favorite football team in a BCS bowl game. Make the occasion even more fun and competitive by trying to predict the NCAA football bowl games.

Use my spreadsheet template to create a college bowl pool with your friends or coworkers. Simply download the Excel file linked to below and follow the instructions included within the spreadsheet. The NCAA bowl pool also doubles as a printable college football bowl schedule. The spreadsheet is all set up and ready to go - simply make your picks and then watch the game to see who the winner is. It automatically keeps track of several different stats like how many games each person gets correct, what percentage of games you’ve picker correctly, and more!

How it Works

Altogether you do not have to enter or change any formulas or complicated functions to use the spreadsheet, I will briefly explain how it works in case you want to create your own from scratch or modify mine:

The college bowl spreadsheet uses drop down lists to allow the user to select a winning team. The number of games picked correctly is added using Excel’s SUMProduct function. Conditional formatting is used to color code correct picks from incorrect picks.

college bowl schedule 2012


Download the NCAA College Football Bowl Schedule and Pool

To download the spreadsheet simply click the link below which will take you to the box.com, where the file is hosted. Next, click on the “Download” link in the upper right hand corner. That’s it!

Download: NCAA Football Bowl Schedule 2012.xls (hosted on www.box.com)

Update 12/12/12: I uploaded a new version of the spreadsheet with a macro that automatically adds the correct number of columns and stats for the total number of players. To run the macro go to the Master Pool sheet and run the "AddPlayers" macro (by going to View>Macros>View Macros>AddPlayers>Run). After hitting run, enter total number of players into pop-up input box. Click OK then complete the rest of the template as usual.

Also, I’ve created a Google doc to start an Excel Spreadsheets Help NCAA bowl pool. To join, download the spreadsheet, make your predictions, then copy and paste your picks into my Google doc here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Av7RTFdlK3AmdFBwcHBINi1jUi1jdm1ZWTFtbWNuQkE

Final Thoughts

I’m sad to see my Buckeyes sitting on the sidelines this year (should have taken a bowl ban last year) although I’m hoping my Toledo Rockets can cap off the year with a good win. I’m a Big Ten and MAC guy so I’ll be pulling for each conference team but I have to admit I have almost no hope or confidence for any of them winning a single match up. What are your NCAA bowl predictions? What are your bowl picks? Leave a comment below and let me know! Like our Facebook page to receive notification when we post our NFL playoffs bracket and other sport templates.

-Nick
Go Rockets!

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Quick Tips: Yes/No Drop Down List


Today I'm going to show you how to make a quick and easy multiple option drop down list in Microsoft Excel 2007 (works in other versions too). Drop down lists are useful when you want to limit a user's entries to only values that you specify. I've showed you earlier how to create a drop down list using Named Ranges, which takes a few extra steps but offers more repeatability. Now I will show you a much faster and simpler solution for creating these types of lists in Excel. 
 
 
First, begin by selecting the cell you would like to add the selectable list to. Next, go to the Data tab on top and select Data Validation. A window will popup. Here you will find from the list of pull down options the ability to change the Allow: feature to List. Now, under the Source type in the name of the values you want to appear in the pull down menu, which each term separated by a comma. Click OK when you are done. That's it! 
 
 
If you click on the cell you should see an arrow appear on the right hand side of the cell. When you click the arrow you should see the name of the values that you entered in the Source box. You can fill down this cell to other cells you would like to contain the same pull down lists. 
 
 
 
Also, you can convert your user entered Yes or No value into a numeric value for calculations using a simple IF formula,: If the user selects Yes then the value is 1, if No, then 0: 
 
=IF(A1="Yes",1,0) 
 
For more Excel spreadsheets tips please consider joining our newsletter. 
 
Check out some of our recommended tools to learn Excel and how to write VBA macros.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Shared Apartment Expenses Spreadsheet


Have you ever been in that situation where you are sharing a living space with a number of other people and you are constantly trying to figure out who owes who what because each utility is in a different person's name? I've moved fourteen times in the past six years (because of going back-and-forth from university to co-op every semester) and I've had different roommates at each location. I needed a quick and easy way to keep track of who owed me money or what I owed someone else and to make sure all the bills were paid. I wanted this to stay updated in real time so I could simply look at it whenever and know exactly what was due and who to pay, all without needing to sit down do the math every time. This has lead to the creation of my Shared Apartment Expenses Spreadsheet. The following example is for an apartment with three roommates.


The first thing I do is list a description of what utility or rent is due. In the next column I list the amount due. The next column is the category where the expense falls under. These are actually drop-down lists which originate on another sheet where I listed out all of the possible categories. See data validation if you don't know how to make a drop down list. I only did this so I could look at statistics for each month and category.

I also put the due date for each bill and when it was actually paid for my records. Now the important part: who paid what? I make a column for each person and every time they pay a bill I put the amount under their name next to the item that they paid. 

The next section is who owes who what. Now this could be a simple formula if you have decided to split everything evenly among yourselves. But come on, life is never that simple. The apartment I am living in has a one car garage and a master bedroom. It's not really fair to the person that gets screwed out of the garage and doesn't even get their own bedroom! Therefore, we decided to split the rent like so: 
  Instead of having a simple formula you have to manually enter the amounts for the rent. Every other utility is split evenly. The totals are listed at the bottom of the columns. Now, the next thing we want to prevent is to have to write a million checks. If you owe me money, but I owe you more money, I simply subtract what you owe me then write you a check. 




Next is the all important who paid what. This is more complicated and confusing the more people you have but it works and in the end makes things much easier. I list each person and what they've paid to the other two people. I then add up the total at the bottom.


Alright, so that's the easy and obvious part but I want to know what the balance is right now. Below the who paid what section is where the magic happens. First, in cell R16 I take what Nick owes Brian and subtract what Nick PAID Brian (=K12-R12). In the next cell I take what Nick owes Ron and subtract what Nick PAID Ron (=L12-S12) and so on for the other two people. Now we can see who owes who what after payments. Brian owed Nick $86.71 but after a payment of $22.16 only owes him $64.55.

However, Nick also owes Brian $31.67, which is less than what Brian owes Nick. So, we subtract what Brian owes Nick so that Brian just has to pay Nick $32.88 instead of $64.55. Make sense? The formula looks like this: 


=IF(R16>T16,R16-T16,0)


If what Nick owes Brian is greater than what Brian owes Nick, subtract the two, otherwise put zero. Nick's balance for Brian is zero. Brian's balance is greater than Nick's so subtract the two and get $32.88. Basically, each person either has a zero balance or they owe money to someone. There should be no negative values.

The last line tells you who you owe money to in real time. Every time someone makes a bill payment or pays someone else it automatically updates and adjusts the values. No math involved! No more fighting over who paid what and when.




On the last sheet (Statistics) I decided to get a little crazy and keep track of some statistics: the totals for each month and which utility was the biggest drain on my wallet. I used this formula for the utilities

=IF(Statistics!B$1=Balance!$C4,Balance!$B4,"")


And this formula for the months: 


=SUMIF(Balance!D:D,A15,Balance!B:B)


This is also a good place to check the totals with the master sheet to ensure your work is correct.

I had to make some quick graphs to visualize the data. Who doesn't love a good pie chart? 

And there you have it, another practical, real world application of Microsoft Excel!