Why Does David Ramsey Work So Well for You?

Personally, I like Dave Ramsay, because he gives you baby steps, his program is logical, he sticks to his guns. I have never heard him waiver. He seems to have a soul and understands that life happens and you need to deal with it emotionally as well as financially. I also like David Bach "Smart Couples Finish Rich"

Suze Orman has the caring side too, but I just find her overly commercial and some of her recommendations are made off the cuff without enough knowledge of the people that the recommendations are being made for. (sorry for the bad grammar.)

Just know that any commercial "Financial Advisor" is not liable for any of their recommendations. All these guys on TV and radio--no responsiblity. The book writers--no resposibility. The newspaper columnists-no responsibility. The seminars--no responsibility. Your personal financial advisor--some of the responsibility. Yourselves--all the responsibility. The bottom line with figuring out your finances is: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If the Madoff clients had just stopped to listen to his promise - promise of a double digit return long term. That's not reality. It should have been a red flag.

Sorry to have ranted, but as a former financial advisor I have seen too many people duped by high returns and outrageous promises. I also had to regularly argue against general recommendations that did not apply to individual situations.

Good for you on getting the finances in order!
S.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Dave Ramsey!!!! Not only is he logical and stands his ground, but his plan works. He doesn't try to give you a feel good approach, he tells you like it is. The other thing he STRESSES is that BOTH parties must be involved. For the first 9 years of our marriage I did the bills and my husband brought home the money. The because I couldn't get him to pay attention to where it was going, it would cause a fight and it would be "well what are you doing with my money?" We got the book last year for Christmas and after he read it, he had an Ah-ha moment. That it can't all be on me. That real men take care of their families, including that money issues are both peoples problems not just one. It got my husband on board and last year we paid off all of our debt except the house. This is the 1st Christmas that not 1 thing has been charged. It has been great!!!!

Dave Ramsey is good, but also check out Mary Hunt of Debt Proof living. She is good and has "walked the walk" of being in debt and offers solid advice for getting out of debt and beginning a new financial life. Check her out at http://www.debtproofliving.com/ . You can also sign up for her daily Everday Cheapskate while you are there for a week full of tips, recipes and advice on a daily basis.
addendum:
I almost forgot my other fave-Trent Hamm of The Simple Dollar. Here is another "I've been there-done that" blog you can recieve daily, but he has another twist. He reads and reviews tons of financial books, has recipes he actually compares in prices by using cheaper items, always gives credit and links to other financial bloggers and is very sensible in times like these. Even though he has to be a zillion years younger than I am and some of his writings are for younger folks (like diaper articles) I am still impressed by his common sense. Find him at
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/ . Good Luck in you quest.

Hi M B -
I'd also check out Matt Bell at www.MoneyPurposeJoy.com
Like Dave Ramsey, his money managing strategies are straightforward and biblically-based but he's local to Chicago and far less commercial. Further, he's definitely 'been there' and had to dig himself out of debt the hard way. He's fully committed to helping people get out of debt and believes it will bring add joy to your life...I happen to agree. I don't think most people fully understand the amount of stress debt adds to your life until you're out from under it. Liberating! For the record, I do also like Mary Hunts daily email Everyday Cheapskate. Sometimes it's not all that interesting but other days it's a gem.

All the best to you!

Don't know much about Dave Ramsey. Saw him for a few minutes the other day. I tend to watch Clark Howard (www.clarkhoward.com). He doesn't try to sell you anything, just has a lot of common sense type discussions and helps people get back on track. Stay away from Susie Orman. I also subscribe to Mary Hunt, but she seems to be pushing her product (for a price), and I've read a lot of her suggestions and from time to time, she's way off so I wouldn't consider her an expert at all.

Because it was simple and logical. I don't mean simple because it is easy to get rid of debt and I was SOOOO happy. I mean you know exactly what you need to do and exactly what the outcome will be. My favorite Dave statement is this (maybe not word for word but you will get the idea)

Live like no one else is living so you can live like no one else is living.

Basically, give up a few things, make life a little hard and financially tight for a little while and maybe drive a beat up car and work two jobs but when your debt is paid off you can live like no one else is living because you have no debt and complete financial freedom.

Good luck.

It works because he lays it on the line what you need to do and what you should not do.
But if you do not have a regular pay check, like if you are an independent business owner who reaps rewards only when the times are good, it is hard to use his system. You must have a regular pay check for it to work.