In this age of digital nomads, online business owners, self-made entrepreneurs, and on-the-go business owners, productivity is everything. Gone are the days when working hard reigned supreme. Now, it’s all about working smart. It’s possible for anyone to supercharge their productivity and get loads more done in a matter of minutes. All you need are the proper tools and the right technical knowledge.
Microsoft Office 365 is already a productivity suite that lives up to its name. However, there are at least a dozen hacks that make working with it even more convenient than it already is.
Hack#1: Tell Me: An Easy, Personal Guide
First thing’s first; it’s important to know how to navigate through your own applications. A lot of users today prefer the hands-on approach, where they simply click here and there to understand functions firsthand. And when all’s said and done, they eventually turn to video tutorials for easy-to-follow steps.
The web applications for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint all have the ‘Tell Me’ option, which makes finding out about any new and improved features a lot easier. Located in the middle of the home ribbon for all three applications, ‘Tell Me’ helps users locate the app’s different features and their specific functions. It literally tells you what’s what!
Can’t find what you’re looking for? You can also choose ‘Get Help’ to get the top results for your search!
Hack#2: Download All Application Versions
Whether you’re online, offline, or on-the-go, Office 365 has got your back. Most of its popular applications—such as Word and PowerPoint—have both desktop and web versions. Downloading the desktop application ensures you can work on any document even without an active connection. By accessing the web application with your account, you can synchronize files and upload documents for collaboration.
Need to make a quick edit while out of the office? Don’t have your laptop with you? No problem—Office 365 also mobile applications with pretty extensive features and the option to sign in, synchronize, and save at any time. Use your Office 365 subscription to its fullest by making sure you’ve got access to all three application versions.
Here’s Your Complete Guide to All Microsoft Office 365 Applications!
Hack#3: Co-Authoring Made Simple
Need others to work on your file? In Office 365, you can now authorize people to access specific files and edit them as they see fit. Word is not the only application with this feature; Excel and PowerPoint are just as highly collaborative.
Use the Document History to see who added what. You can also tap into this feature to jump to different versions of the document saved throughout the editing process. This means you can easily revert back to previous versions of the file if you don’t agree with the edits.
Even with this, remember to keep access low! Microsoft recommends no more than 10 concurrent editors per file, just to keep things clean and straightforward. Need more than 10? Don’t worry; Microsoft can actually support up to 99. It just gets significantly harder to track edits and backup previous versions as more and more people jump on.
Hack#4: Skpe: Leveled-Up Collaboration
If you think you’ve seen it all, wait ‘til you hear this; Skype’s built into your Office 365 applications. That means you have the option to chat with your team right within the file. No need to option up a separate chat window or start a conversation somewhere else. Simply select the live chat option in your document and instantly get connected real-time with everyone currently editing the file.
This feature also allows you to see who’s doing the editing, as their names come up on the moving cursors. And thanks to the Office 365 mobile applications, you can join in the conversation even on your smartphone! Just look for the chat title in the document.
Hack#5: AI To Avoid Awkward Email Mistakes
Have you ever sent someone an email that wasn’t meant for them? Maybe you’ve accidentally emailed someone, asking them to please refer to the attached file, only to realize after you’ve sent it that there was nothing attached. Office 365’s MailTips is a form of artificial intelligence (AI) that can stop some of these common email mistakes from happening. If it detects something wrong—such as the name’s not matching up or a file mentioned with no attachment—it warns users before they hit the send button , effectively reducing email mistakes.
Knowing your Microsoft Office 365 applications like the back of your hand should help double your productivity. While it’s easily the smartest, most intuitive tool in the market, it’s still up to your level of command to use this miracle suite optimally.
