You can enter a figure directly into a cash-flow cell instead of relying only on the spread tool. Work from left to right: later months adjust to allocate the remaining amount while earlier months stay unchanged.

Example: adjust a A$100,000 build cost

  1. Spread A$100,000 evenly across Months 2–5. Each month starts at A$25,000.
  2. Change Month 2 to A$40,000. The remaining A$60,000 is spread across Months 3–5 at A$20,000 each.
  3. Change Month 4 to A$30,000. Months 2 and 3 stay at A$40,000 and A$20,000. Month 5 adjusts to A$10,000 so the total remains A$100,000.
Amounts after each adjustment
StageMonth 2Month 3Month 4Month 5Total
Initial spreadA$25,000A$25,000A$25,000A$25,000A$100,000
Edit Month 2A$40,000A$20,000A$20,000A$20,000A$100,000
Edit Month 4A$40,000A$20,000A$30,000A$10,000A$100,000

Use the remaining assignable amount to check what has been allocated and what remains. The same principle applies to an S-curve distribution: review the remaining months after each manual edit.