5 tips to format a Word Document into a Masterpiece

Author: Joe Martin, Date: 2014-05-26

Formatting a Word document is crucial in today’s business world. If you are unable to format a simple document then what else are you incapable of doing? Don’t worry because you’re going to fix that problem right now.

Within a few hours of training and practise, most adults can perform the essential commands involved with using Word. But, for those determined to turn a sloppy document into a masterpiece will need to follow these steps for better formatting.

Show All Characters

To see what’s really going on in your Word document, go to your Home toolbar and click on the Show/Hide button to see hidden characters. Yes, your page looks crowded, but now you can have complete control of your document.

Learn to Page Break

Don’t jab at your Return key every time you want to start typing in a new page or section. Instead, go to Page Layout menu and add a Break. There are four section breaks: next page, continuous, odd page, and even page. Pick the Break that best suits the document you’re creating.

Produce Presentable Paragraphs

Paragraphs are an important element in a document. You can create a new paragraph by pressing Enter. However, if you see the paragraph symbol (¶) at the end of every line then you are just creating a mess full of incomplete paragraphs. Instead, only hit Enter at the end of your paragraph and you should see the ¶ character at the beginning and end of a paragraph.

Keep Fonts Simple

Choose an easy-to-read font if you are creating a document for business. Please don’t use Hobo STD as your font when sending a proposal to a potential partner. Instead, stick to professional fonts such as Arial, Times New Roman, Verdana, or Calibri.

Apply Styles for Consistenc 

If you go to your Home Toolbar, you will see a Styles section. The Styles section gives you different options so you can decide how your content will be presented. Using the Styles tool will surely save you from making a mess when applying different commands yourself.

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