Best Excel, Visualization & Video Resources

My students often ask me what books and resources I use to improve my knowledge and the tools I use to create my courses and tutorials.

I put together this page as a handy reference. I’ll keep updating it as I come across new resources.

You can also check out my Amazon page here for a complete list of my recording gear and book recommendations.

Disclosure: Some of the links are affiliate links, which means at no additional cost to you I will receive a small commission if you make a purchase using the links. Thank you for your support. Please only purchase the products if you believe they will add value for you.

Excel 2016 Bible

Without doubt, this is a great book for beginners. It’s a complete guide to all aspects of Excel. This is a great resource book that will take you from beginner to advanced.

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Microsoft Excel Data Analysis and Business Modeling

This book will teach you how to create models with Excel. It includes many examples and exercises to enforce learning. It’s a great Excel manual to have on hand for data modeling projects.

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Excel 2016 All-in-One For Dummies

This book is clear, easy-to-follow and makes Excel very approachable. I’m a fan of the Dummies series. They’ve helped me get started with many technical topics in the past.

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Ctrl Shift Enter

My absolute favorite Excel Advanced Book. No matter how advanced you are in Excel, there is gold in this book. I’ve learnt so much from it. It opened my eyes to so many different possibilities!

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Advanced Excel Essentials

This is the book you need after you cover the essentials. This builds on your existing knowledge and takes it to a new, advanced level. It’s a book that will help you think outside the box.

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Excel Dashboards and Reports

This book is a good start to learn how to design Excel dashboards from scratch. It covers data modeling, Pivot Tables, charts and dashboard design.

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Power Programming with VBA

If you want to master VBA & Macros, you need this book! I first learnt VBA through Google but the pieces only came together after I bought this book (…well originally Excel 2000 version).

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MOS 2016 Study Guide for Excel

If you’d like to get the Excel Specialist certification then this book will be of great help. You will get to improve your Excel skills and practice and prepare for the exam.

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MOS 2016 Study Guide for Microsoft Excel Expert

I used the MOS book series to prepare for Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Expert exams. I found them helpful and learnt a few tricks along the way.

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Power Query, Power Pivot, DAX & Power BI

Excel 2016: Power Query (Get & Transform)

This course is available on LinkedIn Learning.

Oz takes you through the different aspects of Get & Transform.

His style is unique & super fun.

One thing’s for sure: You’re not going to get bored!

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Collect, Combine and Transform Data

Gil Raviv is a Microsoft MVP and a Power BI blogger. This book opened my eyes to the potential of Power Query. Highly recommended!

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M Is for (Data) Monkey

This book shows how to use the Power Query tool to get difficult data sets into both Excel and Power Pivot, and is solely devoted to Power Query dashboarding and reporting.

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Power Query Playlist

Mike Girvin from ExcelIsFun has one of the most comprehensive Excel YouTube channels.

His Power Query playlist has over 150 videos!

Also check out his Microsoft Power Tools for Data Analysis Playlist.

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Learn to write DAX

This is great guide for starting your Advanced Power Pivot & Power BI journey. Teaching yourself DAX is not easy. Matt Allington has done a great job in simplifying complex concepts in his book.

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Up & Running with POWER BI Desktop

This course is a comprehensive, hands-on guide to learning Microsoft Power BI Desktop.

It’s super easy to follow.

You’ll learn the ins-and-outs of Power BI and some powerful tips along the way.

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Data Visualization

Show me the Numbers

What type of charts work well and what to avoid? How should you structure your data tables? How can you bring attention to certain elements without confusing your readers? This books answers it all.

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The Visual Display of Quantitative Information

This is a classic! If you want to deepen your knowledge about the theory of data visualization and see some impressive graphics, this book is a must-have.

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Storytelling with Data

It’s more than a data visualization book. This book shows you how to present your data in a way that resonates with your audience.

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Data at Work

Best practices for creating effective charts and information graphics in Microsoft Excel. It comes with downloadable workbooks and templates you can use with your own data.

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Visual Explanations

Images and Quantities, Evidence and Narrative. This books has it all. Maps, historical drawings and scientific charts. It will give you insight on different methods you can use to get your point across visually.

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Envisioning Information

This book takes you through the various methods you can use to display complex data. It covers statistical graphs, maps, statistical presentations, courtroom exhibits and much more.

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My Most Recommended Tools

think-cell

Create Beautiful Charts in PowerPoint without the hassle in minutes!

Boost your slide layout and automate your regular reports. And all this with a single PowerPoint add-in.

Get Add-In

Camtasia

Camtasia from TechSmith makes it simple to record and create professional-looking videos on Windows and Mac. We use Camtasia for all our tutorials and explanatory videos.

If you need to share information with video, you need Camtasia.

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Simple Slides

Create Beautiful Presentations in Minutes. With Simple Slides you get access to the largest library of professionally designed infographics & slide templates.

If you’re like me and lack design skills, you need Simple Slides.

Easy Slides

Additional tools I use for my business & tutorials

Snagit

Snagit lets you quickly capture a process, add your explanation, and create visual instructions.

We use Snagit to add visuals for all our blog posts.

Capture Your Screen

ConvertKit

ConvertKit makes it really easy to manage your email list. It’s the only email marketing tool I use.

There’s an amazing team behind ConvertKit and it’s been built with care to help creators building online businesses.

Get Started

SiteGround WordPress Host

SiteGround is the perfect hosting company for WordPress sites. I’m really grateful for their immediate availability and helpful assistance.

Their customer support is outstanding. I’m really happy since I switched to them.

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Teachable

Offering online courses to our audience with Teachable changed my business completely.

It’s an easy-to-use platform to transform your experience and know-how into a thriving knowledge business.

Start Teaching

Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 subscription plans include a set of apps that help you stay connected and get things done.

It’s our Office product of choice because we like to take advantage of new features right away.

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Microsoft Surface

Microsoft Surface touchscreen laptops and 2-in-1s empower you to create however you want, wherever you are.

It’s been my laptop of choice for many years and I don’t go anywhere without my Surface.

Find Your Surface

Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

This full frame camera offers stellar image quality for pics and phenomenal performance for video. It’s my main camera now and I absolutely love it. I use it together with this lens, and this memory card.

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Canon EOS 70D

I use the Canon EOS 70D Digital SLR as a second and backup Camera to record my head-shots.

It’s quite easy to get the hang of.

I use it together with this memory card, this lens and this tripod.

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Sound Devices MixPre-3 II

Good audio is important for my tutorials. I use this audio recorder with its ultra-low-noise preamps.

It’s super easy to use and the audio is crisp and clean.

When I’m in the field I use it with the Anker Powerbank.

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DPA 6060 CORE Microphone

I tried several different microphones but this one has it all. It’s just 3 mm (0.12 in) in size but still offers a Max. SPL of 134 dB and a noise level of only 24 dB. It sure is the best omnidirectional lavalier microphone I ever owned.

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Blue Yeti USB Microphone

This is the easiest Microphone to set up. It has zero setup up time.

You plug it in to the USB port of your computer and you’re done.

I’ve tested a few microphones. This is the best I’ve come across, especially for screencasts.

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Bose QuietComfort

This is the best set of wireless headphones I’ve ever owned. It clears away the noisy distractions of the world so you can get deeper into your music, your work, or whatever you want to focus on.

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116 Excel Tutorials in 1

This blog post gives a good overview of all my videos and posts. Also, it’s a channel for collecting ideas from you all! NOTE: The links in this file are updated on a monthly basis so check back to get the latest file.