Microsoft Excel is one of the most popular tools out there for number-crunching. However, there are a plethora of other ways you can use the software and get the most out of it. For instance, I am a freelancer who works with multiple clients. I use Excel for everything from managing my projects and tracking my progress to generating invoices and maintaining a database of potential leads. In fact, it's the only app I use to manage my work -- eliminating the need for a dedicated project management tool.

If your workflow also resembles mine - in the sense that you, too, work with multiple clients, have different deliverables every week, create multiple invoices every month, and keep track of your expenses for tax purposes - here are some of the best ways you can take advantage of Microsoft Excel and make it your custom super-app!

8 Maintaining a repository of completed work

Track your rates and convert currencies

I'm a writer and I contribute to three different websites. I write multiple articles in a week, and it's important for me to make a note of all the articles I write since I need to add them to my invoice at the end of each month. So, as soon as I publish an article, I add the details about it to an Excel sheet. The publishing date, title of the article, link to the article, and the corresponding rate that I got paid for that particular article.

At the end of the rate column, I have the sum formula that calculates the total revenue generated from the articles that I've written for each publication. This way, I can simply enter this value on my invoice instead of manually calculating how much the number adds up to. As a bonus, the adjacent cell has a currency conversion formula using the Currencies data type in Excel. This is because I get paid in USD, but I live in India, where the currency is INR. Using this function, I get a real-time view of my earnings in my local currency.

7 Generating a visual representation of the progress of work

Know how much work is pending

I set a target for myself at the beginning of every month for each of the websites I write for. This target is generally in the form of the number of articles I want to write in a month, or it could also be the target revenue that I want to achieve for that month. Regardless of the parameter, it's important to set a goal and follow it. A good way that I use to track my progress toward a goal is to visualize it in the form of a chart.

Using the details I enter about each article, I have created a visual dashboard that calculates how many pending articles I need to write to achieve my goal. This serves two purposes -- one, it helps me plan the rest of my month, so I know how many articles I need to write each day. Two, it motivates me to work more efficiently so I can meet my targets for the month.

6 Creating different worksheets for various clients

Don't mix up your sources

This is a basic feature of Excel that pretty much everyone would be aware of. Since I work with multiple clients, I create individual worksheets for each of them to ensure I don't crowd all the data in one place. So, I essentially one worksheet to create multiple copies, and change relevant information like targets, rates per article, etc. If you only work with one client, you can create multiple worksheets inside the same spreadsheet for each month. This will let you track your progress month-on-month.

5 A replacement for a project management tool

All your information in one place

There are multiple stages that my articles go through before being published. I find it important to keep a tab on the current status of my articles, so I get a rough idea of when they will be published. In order to do this, I created dropdown menus in Excel next to each article, indicating the real-time status. This gives me an overview of my articles in one place.

You can also create project milestones, assign projects to other members of your team if you have employees, analyze data, create Gantt charts for timelines, etc. -- all inside Excel. Along with time, this can also save you a good chunk of money, which is an important aspect if you're running a small business.

4 Content scheduling

Track when your work goes out

There are certain time slots throughout the day when articles are published. The time slot depends on the type of article, and it's mandatory for an article of that kind to be published at that specific time. This is another area where Excel comes in handy. I have a section in my worksheet where I have different time slots mentioned in adjacent cells in a row. As soon as I pick an article to write, I assign it under that time slot, so I instantly know when to schedule it as soon as I'm done writing.

I've also started uploading videos to YouTube recently, so I also use this method to schedule my videos every single day. I can quickly glance at the schedule and know when I need to push out a new video, without relying on my memory or guessing the upload time.

3 Maintaining a list of devices for review

Never miss an embargo

Brands send me stuff to test and review all the time. Right from the latest smartphones to a cool new 3D printer, there's not a week that goes by without a package showing up at my door. Before I even write about these gadgets, I like to maintain a personal record of all the items brands send me, along with the publications where I'm going to write about them. This helps me attain clarity on what articles to pitch where.

Additional items like a tentative timeline for the review, my point of contact with the brand, and an embargo date, if any, are also mentioned in this list along with the products. I also have a dedicated column next to each item where I mention quick thoughts about a certain product. These act like references when I am writing about the gadget. With so many smartphones launching every month and a bunch of different embargo dates, this level of organization makes it easy to determine when I need to work on which article.

2 Generating invoices with templates

Create professional invoices with a single click

At the end of each month, I need to create an invoice for each of the publications I write for. While I love getting paid, this used to be one of the most boring jobs that I despised doing at the end of each month -- until I realized I could outsource it to Excel. There are a bunch of built-in templates inside the app that you can choose from to generate an invoice. Pick one that you think is the most apt, and half your job is already done. Once I pick, all I do is import the data from my worksheet onto the invoice, since I have a repository of everything from the title to the rates.

I repeat this process for all my clients and only change the name and address of the receiver before sending out the invoice. Without Excel, it would take me hours to manually enter the data in the invoice, especially during months when I've written more articles. Moreover, imagine repeating the process for all clients. That's definitely not the position you want to be in.

1 Calculating expenses for taxes

Your personal book of accounts

I file my own taxes here in India, which means it's important for me to maintain a book of accounts to calculate my earnings at the end of each financial year. Here, we only pay taxes on the profits of a business, so I'm allowed to exclude any expenses for my business from my overall income. This includes all the tech I buy to test and review, and overheads like electricity, Wi-Fi, furniture, etc. I also travel frequently to meet new clients, which also falls under business expenses.

I maintain a separate worksheet for this and enter every single expense I incur into it. Owing to this, I have a clear number at the end of the year that I need to subtract from my revenue, and that's the amount I need to pay taxes on. This simple calculation saves a ton of time since I don't have to browse through my bank statements at the end of the year to manually calculate my expenses.

The super app you didn't know you already had

Instead of using five different apps to perform these functions separately, all you need is Microsoft Excel and some time for the initial setup. Once you have the right tables and visualizations in place, you have your custom tailor-made project manager that's specifically designed for your use case. Track all your work from Excel, and save time by not switching between multiple apps for a single piece of data.