26. Excel Tricks Every Analyst Should Know

26.1 Fast Data Entry Tricks

By Ravindra Bagale · Last updated: 6 October 2026

Example first. Five orders need an Amount formula, an export has blank City cells, three names need first names, and a schedule needs working days only. Four tricks, each under a minute.

Trick 1. Fill one formula into a whole selection with Ctrl+Enter is shown in the box below; tricks 2–4 follow it.

First look at the data (before → after):

Expected result — After Ctrl+Enter

D2:D6: =B2*C2   then Ctrl+Enter

Trick 2. Fill blank cells with the value above

Before:

After:

Steps:

1. Select A1:A5.
2. Click Home › Find & Select › Go To Special › Blanks › OK. Only the blank cells stay selected.
3. Type = and press the Up arrow key (the formula points to the cell above).
4. Press Ctrl+Enter.
5. Copy column A and use Home › Paste › Paste Values so the formulas become text.

Trick 3. Split names with Flash Fill

Before:

After:

Steps:

1. In B1 type Ravindra (the first name from A1).
2. Click B2 and press Ctrl+E (or Data › Data Tools › Flash Fill).
3. Check every row: Flash Fill guesses from the pattern, and the result is values, not formulas.

Trick 4. A series of working days only

Before:

After:

Steps:

1. Type 02-11-2026 in A1 and select A1:A6.
2. Click Home › Editing › Fill › Series.
3. Choose Columns, Type: Date, Date unit: Weekday, Step value 1, and click OK.
4. Saturday and Sunday are skipped: 06-11 is followed by 09-11.

Practice task (try it before you open the answer):

1. Fill blanks in a City column with the value above.
2. Make a series of 6 working days from 02-11-2026.
3. Extract first names from three full names.