Ask Questions About Your Numbers Through Google Sheets

You can connect Google Sheets to your muse so you can ask questions about a spreadsheet in plain words and get plain answers, without writing a single formula.

What it does

Many people run a budget, a price list, or an invoice log in a spreadsheet and still cannot get a quick answer out of it. Connected, the muse reads the sheets in the Google account you sign in with and answers questions such as what you spent in a given month, which client owes the most, and which month grew fastest. Ask it to name the rows and cells behind every figure, so you can check the answer in seconds. It can read your invoice log and list what is still open, who owes what, and which bill is oldest. It can compare months and describe the pattern across a half year. It can build a new tracker from a description, and list what is wrong with a messy sheet, such as blank rows, duplicates, and dates written three ways.

How to use it

1. Open the muse app and go to Settings, then Connectors.
2. Select Connect next to Google Sheets, sign in with the Google account that owns the sheets, and read the permission screen before you approve it.
3. Set approvals so no edit to a sheet happens without your tap.
4. Test with a read: ask the muse to describe a sheet you know and total one column. Check it against the sheet.
5. Ask your real question next, and ask for the rows and cells behind the answer.
6. Keep the first week to questions only. Approve edits one sheet at a time after that.

What you need

• A muse account, with access in the US, Canada, Japan, or Singapore
• A Google account with the spreadsheets you work with
• Clear column headings in the first row of each sheet

What to watch for

• A total can pull in the wrong rows and a comparison can use the wrong months. Check every figure that touches money, a quote, or a decision against the sheet itself.
• The muse can tell you a number fell. It cannot tell you why, or what to do about it. That judgment stays yours.
• Shared sheets need care. An edit is seen by everyone who uses the sheet, so let it answer in chat first and approve changes only after you read them.
• A sheet with no headings and hand-typed totals will read badly. The muse can list the problems, but the fixing decisions are yours.