Add Low-Overwhelm Context to Your Line Charts
The data you display in charts often takes on new meaning when you display it in the context of other data.
One way to add...
Here’s How Inflation Could Affect the Value of Your Home
November 5, 2021
Inflation is rising in the U.S. And that made me wonder how a higher rate of inflation could affect the price of...
Weighing Your Debt Load
(Originally published in Inc Magazine.)
I've talked to any number of business owners over the years who felt buried under a mountain of debt. But...
A Lesson in Excel Analysis Learned from Rising US Inflation
Looking at the trends in the annual rate of change (ROC) of business and economic measures is an excellent way to reveal hidden information...
Professional Quality Excel Chart Labels, Legends, and Colors
The following Excel chart shows that Excel really CAN generate professional-quality chart figures.
Here are some general strategies to consider…
1. Set up your data-plumbing correctly....
Excel Bar Charts with Economic Indicators
The Excel figure below shows three indicators of the US economy. Two show economic improvements and one doesn't.
The Excel Perspective
Using column charts rather than...
How Fast Is Too Fast?
(Originally published in Inc Magazine.)
What typically tops the list of worries of the chief executive officers of fast growing companies? Financing that growth, according...
Warren Buffett, Inflation, and Excel
On May 3, 2021, CNBC quoted Warren Buffett saying, “We are seeing very substantial inflation. We are raising prices. People are raising prices to...
US National Financial Conditions Using Excel Panel Charts
I’ll explain the meaning of this chart figure shortly. But first, let’s look at it from an Excel perspective.
(Note: I’ve begun to use economic...
Dashboard-Like Excel Charts of International Consumer Confidence
The following Excel figure displays its charts in a dashboard-like format. At least, it's in a format that dashboards should use!
When you use simple...

























