How to Make an Eisenhower Matrix Template in Excel (With Easy Steps)

This tutorial will be a step-by-step guideline to make an Eisenhower Matrix template in Excel. The Eisenhower Matrix is very useful to fix the management strategy of a company or an organization. After going through this article, you will be able to create an Eisenhower Matrix. We will also provide you with a free template to get more insight into an Eisenhower Matrix.

Download Free Template

You can download the template from here.

What Is an Eisenhower Matrix?

American educator Stephen Covey first introduced the Eisenhower Matrix. He named it after Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th president of America. Dwight D. Eisenhower was famous for his high output and organization skills. Another name for the Eisenhower Matrix is the Urgent-Important Matrix. Generally, a person can use the Eisenhower Matrix to prioritize his work based on the urgency and importance level of that work. Also, this matrix will allow us to categorize our data such as what you should do right now, what you should plan for later, what you should assign, and what you should remove from your list.

2 Easy Steps to Make an Eisenhower Matrix Template in Excel

In an Eisenhower Matrix, we will have two parts. One part is the data section of the template. The data section will contain two parameters named Important and Urgent. We will set two values Yes or No with Data Validation to fix the level of importance and urgency. Another one is the Eisenhower box. This box will consist of four quadrants. Each quadrant will portray a combination of the importance and urgency of our task. Basically, the four combinations of importance and urgency that the four quadrants represent are:

• Important – Urgent
• Important – Not Urgent
• Not Important – Urgent
• Not Important – Not Urgent

So, in the first step, we will create the data section. Then, in the second step, we will create the Eisenhower box.

STEP 1: Create Data Section of Eisenhower Matrix Template

To make the data section follow the below simple steps.

• To begin with, make a chart in cell range (H4:J13). Use the headings like the following image.
• In addition, we can enter the name of our tasks also in the Tasks column.

• Next, select cell I6.

• Then, go to the Data Select the option Data Validation from the Data Validation dropdown menu.

• A new dialogue box named ‘Data Validation’ will open.
• Furthermore, go to the Settings tab.
• Subsequently, from the Allow section select the option List from the dropdown menu.
• Moreover, type the options Yes and No in the Source field.
• Now, click on OK.

• As a result, we can see a Data Validation dropdown in cell I7. If we click on the dropdown icon of cell I7, the two options Yes and No will be available.

• Afterward, drag the Fill Handle tool vertically from cell I7 to J13.
• Again drag the Fill Handle tool vertically from cell J13 to J14.
• Finally, we get a Data Validation dropdown in all the cells from the range (I6:J13). So, we can express the level of importance and urgency of our tasks by selecting the option Yes or No.

STEP 2: Make Eisenhower Box

In the second step, we will create the part Eisenhower box of an Eisenhower matrix in Excel. Suppose we will select the values Yes or No for a task in the Data section. As a result, the task will automatically appear in the Eisenhower matrix box based on importance and urgency. To do this we will follow the below steps.

• Firstly, create a chart in the cell range (B5:F13). You can do formatting as per your own choice.

• Secondly, select cell D6.
• Type the following formula in that cell:

• Press Enter.

• Next, drag the Fill Handle too from cell D6 to D9.
• So, the above action will insert the above formula from cells D6 to D9.

• Then, select cell F6. Insert the following formula in that cell:

• Hit Enter.

• Afterward, pull the Fill Handle tool from cell F6 to F9.

• Furthermore, select cell D10. Enter the below formula in that cell:

• Press Enter.

• Now, drag the Fill Handle tool from cell D10 to D13.

• Again, select cell F10. Type the following formula in that cell:

• Press Enter.

• Also, drag the Fill Handle tool from cell F10 to F13.
• Lastly, the process to make an Eisenhower box is finished now.

Read More: How to Create a Matrix Chart in Excel (2 Common Types)

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Feature of Eisenhower Matrix Template in Excel

In this section, we will discuss how we can use the Eisenhower Matrix template in Excel. We will create the same template that we created in earlier steps. To illustrate the process we will follow the below steps.

STEPS:

• In the beginning, select importance level Yes from the dropdown menu of cell I6.
• Also, select the value Yes in cell J7.

• As a result, Task-1 automatically appears in the first quadrant of the Eisenhower box. It means Task-1 is both important and urgent.

• After that, for Task-2 Select the value Yes for the importance level in cell I7. Also, select the value No for urgency level in cell J7.
• So, Task-2 appears in the 2nd This means that Task-2 is important but not urgent.

• Moreover, for Task-3 choose an option No in cells I8 and J8. In that case, both the level of importance and urgency of the task is No.
• Lastly, we can see Task-3 in the fourth quadrant.

Conclusion

In the end, this post will show you how to make an Eisenhower Matrix template in Excel. Download the practice workbook that comes with this article to put your skills to the test. If you have any questions, please leave a comment in the box below. We’ll try our best to respond as soon as possible. Keep an eye out for more intriguing Microsoft Excel solutions in the future.

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