Let's break this down. We're going to add 542 and 654 together.

Step 1: We'll start by adding the digits 2 & 4 in column 1 and get 6.

Step 2: We'll start by adding the digits 4 & 5 in column 2 and get 9.

Step 3: We'll start by adding the digits 5 & 6 in column 3 and get 11.
We'll write down the last digit 1 and carry the 1 to the next column.

So, 542 + 654 = 1196.

