☕ Tech Tips & Tales from The MS Office Maestro

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

☕ A quick note from me

Hello Reader

This week has been about doubling down on the new format of Microsoft 365 with Copilot: The Human Advantage, my practical Microsoft 365 and Copilot course for assistants and admin professionals. Following feedback from previous cohorts, I have reduced the sessions from two hours to 90 minutes, which means I am now redesigning all four sessions to make sure every minute earns its place.

If you have been thinking about joining the next cohort, you can find the details here: Microsoft 365 with Copilot - The Human Advantage​

For the Word and PowerPoint sessions, I have also added lessons from my course library as pre-work or reference material. That way, learners can build the foundation first, then come into the live session ready to apply those skills in a practical, Copilot-supported workflow. It is a hugely time-consuming job to design and build properly but it feels important to get the balance right: enough structure to support people, without overwhelming them.

On a personal note, we saw our local(ish) grandchildren this week and celebrated two belated birthdays. We have a tradition that I bake the birthday cake, always marble cake, so a mammoth bake took place. For our 10-year-old granddaughter, Chanah, I made cupcakes in the shape of a C, and for our 8-year-old grandson, I made a number 8. See the photo 😊

It made me smile afterwards, because in a funny way it was a perfect example of this week’s Copilot Moment. I had a loose brief: two children, two birthdays, one family tradition and not quite enough time. The job was to turn that into something organised, practical and personal.

That is often what happens at work too. Someone gives you a rough idea, a few scattered details and a hopeful “Can you put something together?” The skill is in turning that loose brief into something clear, structured and useful.

✨ This week's Copilot Moment

Agenda from a loose brief

You know when you’re handed a rough brief and told, “Can you turn this into an agenda?” but nothing is timed, owned, or particularly clear? This is a simple way to bring structure very quickly.

Instead of building an agenda from scratch, let Copilot help you turn loose notes into something organised and realistic.

Try this in Copilot:

Role: Acting as my agenda planner

Goal: Build a 60-minute agenda from the brief below

Context: Audience = internal; include timing and owners

Steps: Create a table with Time, Item, Owner and Outcome

Expectations: Keep the total to 60 minutes

Why this helps at work

You get immediate structure, clearer expectations and an agenda that’s much easier to agree and stick to.

Quick win: Use this the next time you’re given a vague brief and asked to “put something together”.

📌 A tiny Microsoft tip

Show/Hide formatting marks in Word

If a Word document has strange spacing, bullets jumping around, or headings that won’t behave, turning on formatting marks can make the problem obvious.

It shows you what’s really going on behind the scenes.

Where to find it:

In Word, go to the Home tab and click the ¶ (Show/Hide) button.

Why this helps

You can see extra spaces, empty paragraphs and hidden formatting that’s causing layout issues and fix them quickly.

Try this today: Open a document that feels “wonky”, turn on Show/Hide and remove any unnecessary extra returns.

Coming up in August: Excel with Copilot webinar

If Excel is one of those tools you use because you have to, rather than because you love it, this session is for you.

In August, I am running a practical Excel with Copilot webinar for assistants and admin professionals. We will look at realistic workplace examples, how Copilot can help you understand and work with your data, and where you still need your own judgement.

You can book your place here: Excel with Copilot Webinar

Till next week!

✍️ Shelley Fishel

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