Excel like a finance pro.
Lock the formulas and leave the inputs open
AltR, P, STables & dataWhat makes a model safe to hand to somebody else.
Difficulty
1What it does
Every cell in Excel is marked locked from the start, and that marking does nothing at all until the sheet is protected. So the order is the opposite of what people try: you UNLOCK the input cells first, then protect the sheet, and the result is a model where the assumptions are editable and the calculations can't be typed over. Do it the other way round and you get a sheet where nothing works. Protection is not security — the password is trivially removable — it's there to stop an accident, which is the thing that actually happens.
2The shortcut
- 1Select the input cells, press
Ctrl + 1, **Protection** tab, and UNTICK Locked. - 2Then press
Alt + R,P,Sto protect the sheet. - 3Leave *Select unlocked cells* ticked so tabbing between inputs still works.
3Before → after
Press the shortcut to play it on a sample sheet.
Every cell starts Locked — and that does nothing until you protect
| A — Cell | B — Value | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Price (input) | 42.00 |
| 2 | Volume (input) | 12,000 |
| 3 | Operating income | =(B1-26)*B2-164000 |
Do this in the wrong order and you get a sheet where nothing works. Unlock first, protect second.
4When you use it
- Hand a budget template to department heads without the formulas getting overwritten.
- Stop an accidental paste landing on a calculation.
- Keep a rate table fixed while the scenario inputs stay open.
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