The idea of tripling your pay with Excel is not clickbait or snake oil; it’s a proven reality that you can verify yourself. If you’re one of the billion Excel users worldwide, this is an opportunity for you. Here’s why it works, why it’s available to you today, and how you can get started.
Point 1: The Value Is Real – And Here’s the Proof.
Excel in business today is often messy, chaotic, and inefficient. However, because people lack a comparison, they can’t see just how inefficient it is. Managers and IT departments believe that fixing these issues requires multi-million-dollar systems. They’re conditioned by ERP and FP&A tool vendors, who reinforce this idea, often promoting the concept of “Excel hell.”
The truth? Excel, when done properly, can be as powerful as these high-priced IT systems. Not only that, but it often surpasses them due to its flexibility and ease of use. Accessibility, availability, agility and affordability. And applicability. In a well-documented challenge I set up on LinkedIn, I demonstrated how a small adjustment in Excel could achieve what experts thought only expensive systems could do. This illustrates two key things:
– You don’t need millions in IT investments; you already have Excel.
– Even Excel experts may not realize the potential within Excel.
In short, with the right know-how, you can achieve more with Excel than management often believes possible. This ability makes you invaluable and opens up the potential to triple your pay.
Point 2: It’s Powerful – But Not Complicated.
A big misconception is that if something is transformative, it must be complex. With Excel, the opposite is true. You can achieve remarkable things using simple techniques that don’t require IT-level expertise. The story of Michael Jr. illustrates this perfectly: a low-level employee burdened with repetitive Excel tasks and a dead-end job. Michael Jr. learned a simple technique, developed a proof of concept for his manager, and suddenly, his work was transformed. His tasks became automated, freeing him from hours of mundane work; now being perceived as a value-creator because it has made everyone in the process more productive.
This simplicity doesn’t just save time; it revolutionizes processes. Michael went from an Excel grunt to a valuable consultant whose new skills made him continuously and uniquely valuable and irreplaceable. This transformation is within reach for anyone willing to learn. It’s about using Excel in a smarter way, not in a more complicated way.
Point 3: Managers Will Support You – They Need You.
Some people worry that if they propose an idea, their manager might take credit without giving them recognition. However, in practice, this rarely happens. When you have the know-how, you become indispensable, and managers will naturally recognize your value. If they present your idea, they’ll need you for implementation.
In my career, I’ve found that managers are eager to promote productivity improvements to their own bosses, as these wins reflect positively on them. Your skills and ideas, when presented correctly, become a crucial resource they want to protect and reward, and be associated with.
Point 4: This Isn’t About Mastering Advanced Excel Tools.
Many people think they need to learn every advanced Excel feature, from Power Query and Dynamic Arrays to DAX and M code, to be successful. This approach often complicates things unnecessarily. The secret to tripling your pay with Excel lies not in using the latest, complex features but in applying creative thinking to solve real business problems with existing capabilities.
Consider the “Mission Impossible” challenges inspired by prominent Excel influencers. The proposed solutions are often overly complex, focusing on tools and features. However, if you analyze these problems based on first principles, you’ll find simpler, more elegant solutions that are more scalable and flexible for real-world use. (See examples)
Take the popular account reconciliation techniques widely promoted on social media as an example. With creative thinking, you can automate this process to run in the background every day. Instead of needing to manually reconcile data every time, your solution notifies you only when there’s an issue. This simple yet powerful approach saves time and shows your value as someone who can think beyond conventional Excel limitations.
Getting Started: Steps to Triple Your Pay with Excel.
If you’re ready to start, there are free exercises, training content, and examples to get you moving in the right direction. Think of your learning path not as mastering every feature in Excel but as learning to use what’s already there to solve bigger everyday problems. Remember, this isn’t about finding the latest trick but about understanding your business problems and seeing how Excel can solve them efficiently.
In Summary:
Triple Your Pay with Excel is real. I know because I did that four times in my career from an average Excel pay rate. It’s proven, available, and achievable if you’re ready to think creatively and focus on solutions rather than tools. This is not about going through the advanced Excel roadmap; it’s about using what you already have to unlock transformative value. And, as countless examples show, it’s simpler and more accessible than you might think.
Start thinking outside the box, and you’ll realize the value that lies within Excel – and in yourself.
This is a podcast by Hiran de Silva. Narrated by Bill.
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