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 $100,000 hard cost
- Spread $100,000 evenly across Months 2–5. Each month starts at $25,000.
- Change Month 2 to $40,000. The remaining $60,000 is spread across Months 3–5 at $20,000 each.
- Change Month 4 to $30,000. Months 2 and 3 stay at $40,000 and $20,000. Month 5 adjusts to $10,000 so the total remains $100,000.
| Stage | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial spread | $25,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 | $100,000 |
| Edit Month 2 | $40,000 | $20,000 | $20,000 | $20,000 | $100,000 |
| Edit Month 4 | $40,000 | $20,000 | $30,000 | $10,000 | $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.