Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #379, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! Anyone else feeling a little overwhelmed with everything AI these days? Every day, panicked people on Twitter are prophesying the end of white-collar jobs. And Block recently announced they are reducing their headcount by 40% (4,000 people) because of AI, so maybe they have a point. But on a visit to a new dentist last month, I still had to fill out a paper form...
7 days ago • 4 min read
Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #378, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! Last week, I shared an essay about how we’re at a threshold in 2026 where writing complex formulas from scratch doesn't make sense anymore (and others have come to similar conclusions). It’s simply no longer economically viable to spend 45 minutes wrestling with syntax when Gemini can generate the same result in seconds. Today, we’re putting that theory to the test with one of the...
14 days ago • 3 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #377, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! Coming to your inbox on a Tuesday this week, because it was a public holiday here in the US yesterday. Today I'm pondering whether it makes sense to write your own formulas anymore. AI tools are getting so good at writing formula syntax (and Apps Script code) that it doesn't make sense (economically at least) to spend hours crafting complex formulas yourself, if...
20 days ago • 5 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #376, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! I've been using Gemini and Gemini Canvas a lot recently for various projects. It's mind-blowing how quick it is at generating formulas and scripts that work. We're definitely at the threshold (or maybe already past it 🤔) where it doesn't make sense to write your own complex formulas or code from scratch (for specific problems with limited scope). Having said...
28 days ago • 3 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #375, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! We're still in an ice box on the east coast of the US with the snow set to hang around for a while yet. It's beautiful but I am looking forward to the ice melting so it's easier to get around. The Potomac river is covered with ice Today's newsletter is not directly related to Google Sheets. Instead, I'm sharing the sources I use to stay informed of AI...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #374, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! Coming to you from the cold and snowy East Coast of the US. We didn't quite get the 20 inches of snow forecast earlier in the week, but we did end up getting around 8 - 10 inches of very dry, powdery snow. And with the temps rarely getting above 20 F (-7 C) this week, it's going to stick around for a while yet. School is closed so you'll probably find me and my...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #373, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! January is a great time to sharpen your Google Sheets fundamentals: those small skills you build now that will save you time all year. One of the best examples is learning a few simple keyboard shortcuts, which is what we're going to see today. You probably already use Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V to copy and paste values, and can appreciate how this is quicker than...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #372, your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form! Hoping your 2026 is off to a great start! I'm feeling positive and optimistic for 2026, but reality has also kept me grounded ;) I've only had one work day so far (kids were off sick most of last week, thankfully both better) and I'm now under the weather myself. But it's not too bad and hopefully will pass within a day or two. I finally published my end-of-year...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Brought to you by: Hi Reader, Happy New Year! 🎉 Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #371, your first Monday morning espresso of 2026, in spreadsheet form! I usually write a year-in-review post over the holidays but this holiday was so busy that I didn't get round to it. It's a valuable exercise to reflect on the year gone and think about what I want to achieve this year. So I'm still planning to write one and will share it when I do. I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and feel...
2 months ago • 2 min read