This week I’ll discuss another shortcut/trick that I regularly use to speed up the process of building Cause Maps (visual root cause analysis) in Excel. Last week I focused on the fastest way to copy a box. This week we are going to discuss connectors. If you have built any maps (Cause Maps or process maps) in Excel, then you are probably familiar with using the connectors to connect the boxes together. Once connected, you can move the boxes and the connections stay in place (see figure below). 
Accessing the Connectors Menu
For those who aren’t familiar with the connector function I’ll briefly explain how to locate and use them. To access the connector functions you must get them from the AutoShapes menu on the Drawing Toolbar. 
Once you find the Connectors Menu, you can then drag it out of the AutoShapes Menu for easier access. To do this, place your cursor at the top of the Connectors Menu. A note will pop up and state “Drag to make this menu float”. Click your mouse and then drag the menu away to create a separate toolbar for the connectors.
Connecting Boxes
Now that you have found the connectors, using them is straightforward. The connector that we typically use is the “Elbow Arrow Connector” which is located in the middle of the menu. Click on the icon and then click on the blue dot connection point for the box you want to begin the connection, drag the cursor to the box you want to connect to, then release.
The Multiple Connector Trick
Now that you know how to connect boxes together, I’ll show you a connector trick that not many people are aware of. Let’s say that you have built a map with several boxes. You now want to connect each of the boxes together. 
Typically, you would have to click on the “elbow arrow connector” icon for each connection that you want to make. A shortcut, however, allows you to connect all of the boxes without having to click the icon each time. The shortcut is simple. Instead of clicking on the “elbow arrow connector” icon just once, DOUBLE CLICK the icon. You have just put that function into a locked state. Now you can draw as many connectors as you want without having to click on the toolbar for each one. Give it a try. With the shortcut from last week’s blog for copy and pasting a box, and this shortcut for attaching multiple connectors, you can really speed up the process of building your maps in Excel. Check back next week for the next tip in the series.
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