Resources

This book is a fantastic reference for both beginners and advanced users.  It does a great job of introducing the beginner to Pivot Tables, and includes companion files you can download and practice the techniques.  For the advanced user you will probably say, “huh, I didn't know you could do that!”, more than a few times while reading this book.

This is not your everyday Excel reference book.  Jordan presents a different approach to how things are “normally” done in Excel & VBA.  From nested IF statements to advanced database models in Excel, he covers a lot of areas that will help any analyst.  You might not agree with all of his techniques, but I really appreciate that Jordan makes you think outside the box here.  It has definitely helped me rethink some of my design and development practices.

Did you know that Shift+Enter on the Find Menu finds the previous entry (instead of the next entry)?  Every time I pick up this book I learn an awesome little shortcut, and usually say “wow!”.  This is one of those references that will arm you with tricks that will impress your co-workers/boss.  Not only do these little shortcuts add up to a lot of time saved, but they also inspire me to keep learning the vast ocean that is Excel.

Excel Tables (book)
by Zack Barresse and Kevin Jones

A whole book on Tables! My friends Zack Barresse and Kevin Jones have written THE GUIDE to everything Tables.  This is a great read if you are looking to master Excel Tables. It also includes tons of information and resources for writing VBA for Tables.
eBook Version – Excel Tables Book
Paperback version – Excel Tables Book

If you read my blog then you know I love keyboard shortcuts! This reference card contains over 200 keyboard shortcuts for both the Windows and Mac versions of Excel. I always reference this when I'm using Excel on a Mac, and it has been a lifesaver. Keep one on your desk and one in your briefcase/backpack.

Excel 2013 Power Programming with VBA 

At 1,104 pages this book can be considered the encyclopedia of VBA. It's massive! I started learning VBA with the 2003 version of this book, and continue to buy the latest versions. This is another one of those references that I learn something new from every time I pick it up. John does a great job of explaining the basics of the VBA application, and the book also comes with a CD that contains a ton of sample files to help you learn the code.

I consider this book to be the “crash course” version of the Power Programming book above.  VBA Programming for Dummies is probably my favorite VBA book.  It's only 390 pages in length, and it's a great read if you are just getting started with VBA.  John does a fantastic job of going over the basics of object oriented programming in Excel, and provides a great introduction to coding.  The covers all essentials of creating macros, add-ins, applications, and more.

If you are looking to take your VBA skills to the next level and develop an application or add-in, then this is the book for you.  I learned a lot of great techniques and best practices from this book, and still continue to reference it.  It even dives into .Net development for Excel, which will help you develop more robust and commercial quality applications.

DAX Formulas for PowerPivot

This book really opened my eyes to the power of PowerPivot.  Rob helped create PowerPivot, so it's no wonder that this book is filled with techniques that will really help you get the most out of this tool.  For me this book was an extremely valuable reference for the first PowerPivot project I worked on, and I continue to reference it.  It has a lot of great examples and sample files to follow along with.

I often refer to Ken Puls (the co-author) as “Mr. Power Query”. Both Ken and Miguel are a few of the leading experts in the field of Power Query. They conduct live training seminars and know just about everything there is to know about this tool. This book will help get you started with Power Query, and become a power user. It is a great reference to keep on your desk.

Power Query for Power BI and Excel 

Power Query is probably one of the most practical new Business Intelligence tools from Microsoft.  It will save you a ton of time with transforming your data and automating common processes.  Chris's book is a valuable resource that covers all the basic and advanced features of Power Query.  It also includes some great recipes (examples) that will show you some of the capabilities of this tool.

I have tried a lot of different keyboards and I really like this combo from Logitech.  It is very simple in design and doesn't contain all those extra buttons that we never use.  Plus, the function keys (F2 in particular) are big and easy to press.  I wrote an entire article on what makes a good keyboard for Excel.

If you love Excel, then make it official and get a t-shirt. I had the opportunity to visit the Microsoft campus in Redmond recently for the MVP Summit, and I couldn't leave without one of these.   I even take mine paddle boarding…

Unfortunately, Microsoft is not making this shirt anymore.  I've been bugging them about it, and hopefully they bring it back some day.