If you use the Purdue Extension templates, a frequently overlooked feature in Word and Publisher can save you time and headaches.

Every Purdue Extension template for Word and Publisher on the Communication Survival Guide Web site comes with a variety of styles built-in. So, instead of trying to figure out what size font you should use for a heading, whether you should make it bold, or what color it should be, you can just use the built-in styles.

Finding the style menus

Not sure where to find the styles menus in Word or Publisher?

In Word, the styles menu is a dropdown menu in the “Formatting” toolbar. Most of the time, you’ll see “Normal” next to your list of fonts (typically on the upper left of your screen — see the picture below). If you click on the arrow next to “Normal,” a list of styles will appear.

If you don’t see the styles menu on your screen, make sure you are displaying the “Formatting” toolbar (under the “View” menu select “Toolbars,” then make sure there is a checkmark next to “Formatting”). If you still don’t see the styles menu, go to the “Format” menu and select “Style.”




To bring up the styles menu in Publisher, go to the “Format” menu and select, “Styles and Formatting” (see first picture below). That will bring up the “Styles and Formatting” menu (see second picture below).

Applying styles

To apply styles to your text, all you have to do is highlight the text you want to change, then click on the style in the menu. Because the styles are built in, you don’t have to think about what your headings will look like or worry about applying each attribute to every heading.

And that means you can spend less time worrying about what your document looks like and more time on everything else.

Kevin Leigh Smith, kevlsmith@purdue.edu

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