In the earlier post, we saw how boring text can be converted into interesting and high-impact slides. The only pending problem was that splitting text into words or characters needed to be done manually. That is a tedious process. Therefore, I wrote a macro to simplify this activity. Read on to find out how to download and use this macro.

Get the macro

Download the Split Text macro file. This is a zip file. Unzip it into a folder and open it. The macro will work only while this file is open. DO NOT change any code in this file. Just use it. The file name is Convert Text into Letters or words V7.pptm

When you open the file, you will receive a macro warning. Choose Enable Macros. Now the macro is available to you for use in any other presentation.

See all the slides in this presentation. It has detailed instructions and samples to show you how to use this macro.

How to use the Split Text macro

Keep the macro file open.

Type text into a shape or textbox. Format it as required. Make sure that only one textbox / shape is selected.

Choose the View tab – Macros. A dialog appears showing a list of available macros. From the dropdown below, choose All Open Presentations.

Now choose the macro you want to run: SplitText2Chars or SplitText2Words.

Click the run button. That’s it.

At the top of the slide, separate words or characters will be shown. All the newly created text items are already selected. If you do not like the result, just press delete or Undo to revert to earlier state.

Original text is not affected. However, the formatting applied to original text is automatically copied to individual characters or words.

Typically you will copy these objects to another slide and beautify it.

What next?

Now it is your turn. Use your creativity and create an artistic slide from the individual characters or words. We are not doing this just for the fun of it. The resulting slide must convey the meaning more effectively than the original text. That is the primary objective.

Here are some examples. Simply changing color, font size and alignment illustrates the concept of variation.

Decide what is important and emphasize it more. The concept of “Every” day is emphasized using repetition with color gradations.

Open existing presentations and see where you can apply this idea. Do post your results here. Let others learn and benefit from your creativity.

Key learning

If any thing is boring and monotonous, you can make it exciting by adding division, variation, differential emphasis and positioning.

This concept can be applied not just in PowerPoint or other Office tools but in any other pertinent situation.

Enjoy!