Tech Tips & Tales from The MS Office Maestro

Your weekly guided mini lesson on Microsoft, Copilot & smart working

Hello Reader

We are still in Florida where this week I delivered the final session of Microsoft 365 with Copilot: The Human Advantage, this time focusing on Outlook and Teams.

It was a lovely way to finish the programme. There were lots of kind thank you messages afterwards, and I know many attendees will be going back to the replays of each session to help cement the learning. That is often where confidence really starts to grow, when you revisit what you saw, try it in your own time, and begin to make it part of the way you work.

All of this has been happening while I have been taking what can only be described as industrial-strength painkillers for my back, which has decided now was the perfect time to make itself known again. If I seemed especially upbeat at any point, that may have been professionalism, determination, or very strong medication. Quite possibly all three.

Now we are taking a few days off and switching from training mode to grandparent mode, looking after two of our US grandchildren, with museums and zoos firmly on the agenda. I suspect the pace will not be any slower, just quite a bit noisier.

Although this week’s live session was all about Outlook and Teams, I found myself still thinking about last week’s PowerPoint session, so this week’s Copilot Moment and Tiny Microsoft Tip both come from that world. Sometimes the most useful ideas are the ones that help you present with a little more confidence and a lot less faffing.

✨ This week's Copilot Moment

Speaker notes from slide bullets

You know when your slides are fine… but you still need to work out what you’re actually going to say? Bullet points are great, but they don’t always translate smoothly when you’re presenting.

This is a simple way to turn slide bullets into clear, natural speaker notes, without scripting yourself word for word.

Try this in Copilot:

Role: Acting as my speaking coach
​Goal: Create speaker notes for the slides below
​Context: Friendly, confident tone; suitable for presenting
​Steps: For each slide, expand the bullets into a short spoken explanation
​Expectations: 40-70 words per slide; organise notes by slide title

Why this helps at work:

You spend less time rehearsing, sound more confident when presenting and keep your message consistent, especially when presenting more than once.

Quick Win

Paste one slide’s bullets into Copilot and generate notes for just that slide before your next meeting.

📌 A tiny Microsoft tip

Keep Source Formatting in PowerPoint

What it does​
Keeps the original design of the slide you’re pasting, including fonts, colours and layout.

Where to find it​
After you paste, click the small paste options icon that appears, then choose Keep Source Formatting.

Why this helps​
This is useful when the original slide design matters, for example when you’re reusing branded slides or bringing in content that needs to stay exactly as it is.

Be aware though, it can introduce a second set of fonts and colours into your presentation, which can make your deck look inconsistent.

Try this today​
Copy a slide from another presentation and paste it twice.

First choose Keep Source Formatting, then try Use Destination Theme.
You’ll instantly see the difference, it’s one of those small things that makes a big impact.

💛 Before I go...

If you would like to join me for the next round of Microsoft 365 with Copilot: The Human Advantage, the waitlist for Cohort 5 is now open.

The dates are:

• 8 September
• 15 September
• 22 September
• 29 September

​Add yourself to the waitlist here ​

If you would like practical, supportive Microsoft 365 and Copilot training that helps you use the tools properly in real working life, now is a good time to add your name to the list. I will be in touch with more information nearer the time.

For now, I am off to enjoy a few days of grandparent duty, museums, zoos, and, I suspect, very little sitting down.

✍️ Shelley Fishel

The MS Office Maestro​
Expert-led, human-centered Microsoft 365 training