Ever since I realized the true potential of NotebookLM, I've been trying to use it for a lot of tasks in everyday life. I recently figured that I could use it to improve my productivity and make my workflow more efficient. A part of my regular workflow also involves working with Excel sheets. I'm a freelancer, and I use Excel to manage my projects, track payments, etc. I also provide marketing services, and some clients expect me to maintain an Excel sheet consisting of the deliverables, research data, etc. Frankly, my Excel skills are quite average, so I used to struggle a bit with some tasks -- until I realized how I could improve my Excel workflow using NotebookLM.
It all started as an experiment, with the outlook being more along the lines of 'let's see what it can and can't do'. After playing around with it for a while, I was pleasantly surprised by how helpful NotebookLM was in making my Excel workflow smoother. Depending on the kind of tasks you perform, I found a few ways in which NotebookLM can aid your everyday Excel workflow and make your life easier. Compared to other LLMs, NotebookLM doesn't really provide instructions to carry out a task. Instead, it can process files and eliminate manual work that would otherwise consume time and resources. Here are some effective ways in which you can utilize NotebookLM to improve your Excel experience.
Get actionable insights
Summarize large spreadsheets
When working with large spreadsheets that have thousands of rows and columns with various types of data, it gets extremely difficult to figure out some specifics - especially if you're like me and you're not familiar with Excel. Thankfully, NotebookLM can read the entire spreadsheet for you and answer all your questions -- while even giving you actionable data. Want to know the sales figures of a particular SKU in the month of July, in a certain region? Just export your spreadsheet as a PDF, feed it into NotebookLM, and ask away!
You can also generate summaries that can tell you the overall picture in a concise manner. For example, you can say, "How were the sales of the company last year at this time compared to this year?" NotebookLM will generate an answer by automatically comparing the data from the spreadsheet. This saves you a good chunk of time and manual effort. You can play around with such questions and prompts to see what sort of result you get. Once you're confident, you can generate more complex data.
Hear summaries of your data
Create audio overviews
In continuation of the previous use case, NotebookLM can generate audio summaries as well, along with text. Think of it as a podcast with all the important information from the spreadsheet. You may be thinking about how an audio version of a spreadsheet would help anyone. Well, there's a smart little use case hidden here. Feed an Excel spreadsheet, ask NotebookLM relevant questions about it, and then generate an audio overview.
I like using this as a way to obtain detailed information from the spreadsheet when I'm not necessarily working. The audio can be played when you're commuting, working out, or just relaxing on your couch. This way, you learn more about a few spreadsheets without perusing through multiple pages manually. Sometimes, an audio cue can help people remember facts better. I also like that the conversational tone makes the audio feel as natural as possible.
Visualize data relationships
Mind maps are useful
Just like how audio cues can be helpful, visual cues also play an equally important role in understanding certain aspects of a spreadsheet. For instance, some spreadsheets may have lots of complex data that can be hard to read -- especially if someone isn't too good with numbers. If you're like me and you need assistance with visualizing your data, NotebookLM is here to help. Use the "generate a mind map" command after uploading your spreadsheet.
Some examples of possible use cases include generating a mind map of the different parameters linked to sales. This will include the relationship between sales and different metrics like regions, pricing, categories, etc. If you're new to sales, this should give you a clear picture of how these factors are related. You can also ask NotebookLM to explain the mapping in detail.
Answer common questions
Generate FAQs
Lots of people create Excel workbooks right before a presentation. This is another place where NotebookLM comes in clutch with its AI capabilities. When preparing a presentation for potential clients or co-workers, you may want to be ready for any questions that they may ask you. Answering common questions accurately is important to convey your understanding of the spreadsheet.
So, ask NotebookLM what are some common questions that people may have related to the data in the spreadsheet. NotebookLM will not only list the questions but also give you relevant answers to each of them. This would prepare you to confidently answer any question thrown at you.
Curate reports with data and facts
Get structured outlines
Sometimes, you may have to present the data in a spreadsheet in the form of reports or easily understandable information that anyone without much knowledge of Excel and numbers can process. Here again, NotebookLM can prepare these reports for you with a single command.
You can ask for a report, a blog post, an explanation, or an elaboration on the link between multiple parameters in the spreadsheet. For example, you could say, "Create a sales report from the spreadsheet highlighting the year-on-year growth, focused on potential investors." NotebookLM will create a report that can be presented in front of potential investors who would want to know the trajectory of the company's growth.
AI isn't just about chatbots
I've used tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity earlier to help me perform certain tasks in Excel. They are certainly helpful for that purpose, but NotebookLM lets you perform specific tasks that don't necessarily aid your work inside of Excel, but rather help you be more efficient when working with data and numbers. While you can't make it perform actions directly on your spreadsheet, you can obtain actionable data that definitely improves your efficiency.
