Anne Walsh

I always said that Excel picked me. I have been teaching Excel since the mid-1990s (from Excel 5.0) and have been a Master Instructor and a Microsoft Certified Trainer. Most importantly of all, I have done more than 10,000 hours as a trainer. I have written 8 books on Excel.

What I have seen over and over again is how much suffering people experience with Excel. It is not taught and yet somehow people are expected to know it. People hold themselves back, will not try for a job or promotion that they are well qualified for because “Good Excel Skills are required”.

I see people spending 3 days every month on something that should take the maximum of a couple of hours because they do not have the Excel skills to do it. Time that could be better spent on something else.

As a trainer, I like to “put the fun in functions” and help learners feel free to experiment with Excel. I want it to be, as they say in Ireland, “a bit of craic”.

I have not always been an Excel head. My first job was in Cameroon as an accounting teacher. I had never taught before but I was 21 and knew no better. I typed up my materials on an old manual typewriter and used wax stencils to copy them. I also took up the oboe a couple of years ago and got to Grade III – however I am not available for recitals. I do not wish to be arrested for crimes against music.

Anne Walsh – www.-the-excel-lady.com