◆ Formulas II · drill · Spreadsheet Formulas & Data track
Re-point the stale links
a stale link never announces itself — it computes, it just computes off yesterday, so the page has to be read for the break.
The assumptions were re-issued as v2 and the old v1 figures are still parked in the column beside them. Three cells in the build — one on each driven line, each in a different year — still read the dead column. The tab computes, nothing errors, and those years are quietly wrong. Read each line for the figure that sits off its trend, put the reference back on the live panel, clear the superseded figures, and build the contribution the deck quotes. A silently stale link is worse than a #REF! — at least the #REF! announces itself.
The shortcuts in this drill
Alt walks: tap Alt, release, then the letters in sequence — each key steps one ribbon menu. On a Mac, tap ⌥ and use the same letters (KeyTips, Excel 2024+).
Alt h f c⌥ h f c on macFont color
Font color: blue inputs, black formulas — the oldest convention in banking models, still enforced.
Ctrl+R⌘R on macFill right from the cell to the left
Same as fill down, but across — one quarter’s formula becomes the whole year in two keystrokes.
Ctrl+B⌘B on macBold
Bold marks structure: titles, total rows, anything the reviewer’s eye should land on first.
Alt h b p⌥ h b p on macTop border
Top border above a total row — the accounting ruling that says “this line sums the ones above.”
The optimal line
the par-setting sequence, straight through:
each off-trend cell: F2, walk the reference onto the live panel column B ↵ · select B10:F12 · alt h f c → Green ↵ · select C4:C6 · del · seed B13 and B14 · select B13:F14 · ctrl+r · ctrl+b · alt h b p · ctrl+s
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