It sounds like quite a stretch, but I’m actually not the one that came up with it. However, I do endorse it. Although, I have to admit, I do have a bias because I’m a big fan of Microsoft Excel.

So, where does this come from?

It comes from the title of a new book by Bill Jelen, who has done the branding of himself, which I think is very well deserved, as Mr. Excel.

He’s come out with this new book, Miracles Made Easy with Excel 2007. It’s a terrific book, here’s why I like it:

1. It’s short. I’ve got a couple other Excl 2007 books, which are quite good, but they’ve gotten bigger over the years with each release. Each of these books is now close to 1,000 pages with the latest addition. This book, on the other hand, is under 150 pages. It’s a quick read.

2. It’s loaded with pictures and screen shots. There’s nothing like learning from how somebody else does something. By showing you the screen shots, Bill Jelen, is using a technique that I love to use when documenting things for my clients.

3. It’s colorful. It’s done in color and just leaps more off the page to you.

4. The content. The other three points are nice, but when it really comes down to it the content is king and here the content sizzles. He really gets right to the heart of some of the outstanding features of Excel 2007 that make your life much easier if you do convert to the package. He doesn’t get lost in long explanations, but just gets right to the how-to. I’ve learned quite a bit in such a short period of time.

As another way of looking at the endorsement, I’m considered by many to be very strong in Excel. So, sometimes you can ask if you want to get better in a particular area, where does somebody really good go to learn from. After all, even Tiger Woods has a golf coach.

Bill Jelen was, perhaps, the first resource that I turned to. There are a couple others, but he is my favorite.

I’ve written other blogs about the wonders of going to Excel 2007. I hope you do make that upgrade and that you do use this as an additional resource to really get you up to speed much, much faster.